Jake Odorizzi, Eduardo Escobar Lead Minnesota Twins past St. Louis Cardinals, 7-1

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Amid a bitterly cold April that led to four weather-related postponements, the Minnesota Twins never really had a chance to reap the rewards of a busy offseason.

Now that the weather's turned, the Twins are starting to live up to the lofty expectations that followed the franchise's first postseason appearance in seven seasons.

Led by a strong pitching performance from Jake Odorizzi and a two-run home by Eduardo Escobar, Minnesota beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-1 on Tuesday for a season-high fifth straight victory.

The win capped a two-game series sweep for the Twins, who pulled within two games of .500 and have won 14 of their last 17 games against National League teams. For a team that had lost 11 of 12 a week ago, the turnaround has been a welcomed relief — along with playing regularly after last month's postponements.

Odorizzi (3-2) allowed just two hits in five innings and one run, a homer by Jose Martinez in the first inning. The right-hander combined with three relievers to retire the final 18 batters of the game.

Escobar had two of Minnesota's 10 hits. Robbie Grossman had a two-run double in the fifth inning as the Twins won for the sixth time in seven games.

Carlos Martinez (3-2) saw his stretch of six straight starts allowing one or fewer runs end. The right-hander allowed four runs in five innings, with two of the runs unearned on a day when the Cardinals matched their season worst with three errors.

The Cardinals had just two hits in the loss and six hits combined in the two games against the Twins. St. Louis has now lost two in a row after a season-best five-game winning streak, including a weekend sweep of the Chicago Cubs that ended with a 14-inning victory at nearly 1 a.m. Monday.

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