Brewers 11, Cardinals 2: Elian Herrera went 5-for-5 and scored three times while Carlos Gomez and Scooter Gennett each had three hits and combined for five runs as host Milwaukee put an emphatic end to a season-high seven-game slide.

Ryan Braun added two RBIs and Khris Davis belted his 15th homer for the Brewers, who pulled back ahead of the Cardinals in the National League Central after St. Louis had won eight of 11 to overcome Milwaukee’s 6 ½-game lead at the start of July. The run support was more than enough for Wily Peralta (10-6) as he won for the sixth time in seven decisions after allowing one unearned run on three hits in seven innings.

Carlos Martinez (2-4) lost for the first time since joining the rotation on June 16, giving up four runs on seven hits over four frames. Tony Cruz doubled to account for the Cardinals’ only extra-base hit while St. Louis scored its only runs on a fourth-inning groundout by Matt Adams and a fielder’s choice grounder by pinch hitter George Kottaras in the ninth.

Braun put the Brewers on the board with a two-run bloop single just out of the infield in the opening frame and Gennett answered the Cardinals’ only tally with a two-run double with two outs in the fourth to make it 4-1. Davis began the offensive assault against the St. Louis bullpen in the fifth when he lifted a 2-0 sinker from Seth Maness over the fence in right-center.

Herrera doubled to open the sixth and Gomez brought him home with a single before Braun plated Gomez later in the frame with an RBI single of his own to close the book on Maness. Aramis Ramirez greeted Jason Motte with another run-scoring single to cap the three-run frame and Gomez pushed across Herrera with a double in the seventh before Milwaukee added two more runs in the eighth.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Martinez drew the ire of home plate umpire Jeff Nelson in the third when he flung his bat high into the air in frustration after grounding out to second. After realizing how close his bat came to Nelson, Martinez later apologized and remained in the game. … St. Louis lost for only the fourth time in its last 16 contests in Milwaukee. … Cardinals SS Jhonny Peralta singled in three at-bats and is batting .400 in 14 career games against the Brewers.