Manny Machado helps Dodgers hold off Cardinals

Sept. 14 (UPI) -- Manny Machado used his glove and his bat to help the Los Angeles Dodgers hold off the St. Louis Cardinals in a battle of teams fighting for a playoff spot.

The Dodgers shortstop went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored in the 9-7 victory on Thursday at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. He also had a sensational bare-handed snag in the fourth inning, throwing out Jedd Gyorko after the ball deflected off pitcher Clayton Kershaw.

David Freese helped the Dodgers go up early with a two-run triple in the top of the first inning. Matt Kemp followed with an RBI single in the same inning to give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. Marcell Ozuna plated Matt Carpenter on an RBI ground out for the Cardinals' first run in the bottom of the first inning.

Machado scored Justin Turner on an RBI double in the top of the third inning to distance the Dodgers. Kershaw scored Enrique Hernandez with an RBI single to start the fourth frame. Chris Taylor brought in Austin Barnes with an RBI double in the same inning, giving the Dodgers a 6-1 edge. Justin Turner plated Kershaw on a sacrifice fly before Machado brought in Taylor with another sacrifice fly, giving the Dodgers an 8-1 lead after four innings.

The Cardinals scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth frame, highlighted by a solo home run by Tyson Ross, before Machado came back to the plate.

Machado smacked his 34th home run of the season in the top of the seventh inning, giving the Dodgers a 9-4 advantage.

Los Angeles appeared to be comfortably in control of the game, before Paul DeJong brought in Ozuna with an RBI single in the seventh inning to spark a mini-rally. The Cardinals picked up two more runs in the bottom of the ninth inning on a Gyorko ground out, which featured a throwing error by Machado.

Los Angeles is currently in position to host the Colorado Rockies or play the Arizona Cardinals should there be a tiebreaker game for the division title or the final National League Wild Card spot.

The Dodgers must sweep their final three games against the Cardinals if they want to avoid playing St. Louis in a tiebreaker clash.

Los Angeles and St. Louis resume the four-game series at 8:15 p.m. on Friday in St. Louis.