St. Louis, MO -- (Sports Network) - Manny Parra was solid in six innings of work and Prince Fielder helped seal the win with a three-run homer in the seventh, as the Brewers defeated the Cardinals, 8-2, in the middle installment of a three-game series at Busch Stadium.

Parra (3-4) allowed just two runs on five hits with four walks and three strikeouts to win his third consecutive start.

Jason Kendall went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored for the Brewers, who have won five in a row and seven of their last eight overall. J.J. Hardy had two RBI and a run scored, while Craig Counsell went 2-for-3 with a double, two runs scored, and a RBI.

Nick Stavinoha and Colby Rasmus each drove in a run for the Cardinals, who have lost four of five. Albert Pujols went 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored.

Todd Wellemeyer (3-4) lasted 5 2/3 frames, giving up four runs on three hits with seven walks and three strikeouts to take the loss.

The Brewers, who only could muster two hits in a 1-0 loss on Saturday, exploded for four runs in the first inning. A Counsell walk and Ryan Braun ground-rule double were sandwiched between a pair of strikeouts and Mike Cameron walked to load the bases. Hardy followed with a two-run single and Corey Hart walked to reload the bases before Kendall stroked a two-run single.

"The first inning was a little shaky. I gave them 5 1/2 quality more innings and that's all I can do," Wellemeyer said.

St. Louis plated a pair of runs in the sixth to cut the deficit in half. Pujols doubled to left-center and Yadier Molina walked to set up a first and second with no outs. Stavinoha followed with an RBI single and Rasmus grounded into a fielder's choice to plate Molina.

Fielder essentially sealed the victory for the Brewers during their next at- bat with a three-run home run. Blaine Boyer took over on the hill and gave up a single to Counsell before drilling Braun with a pitch. Fielder then drove a 1-2 fastball over the right-field wall to give Milwaukee a five-run cushion.

"I feel like that was huge. With Prince hitting that home run, it put them back in a hole and gave us the momentum back," Parra said about Fielder's homer.

The Brewers added an insurance run in the eighth on Counsell's RBI ground-rule double.

Todd Coffey tossed a scoreless seventh and eighth, while Seth McClung retired the side in the ninth to seal the win for Milwaukee.

Game Notes

St. Louis went 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position, while Milwaukee went 4-for-11 with RISP...The final game in this series will take place on Monday at 8:15 p.m. (et)...Milwaukee second baseman Weeks left in the first inning with soreness in his left wrist after striking out during his first at-bat. Bill Hall took over for Weeks in the leadoff spot and played third. Counsell moved from third to second base...Cardinals manager Tony La Russa expects pitcher Chris Carpenter to return from the disabled list on Wednesday and start versus the Cubs that night. A strained left oblique muscle has kept Carpenter out of action since April 14. Carpenter is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in a pair of starts this season...Kendall now has 1,999 hits in his career, which ranks eighth all-time among those who have appeared in at least 1,000 games as a catcher.