Cardinals 8, Giants 3: Jon Jay, Yadier Molina and Matt Holliday drove in two runs apiece and Adam Wainwright tossed seven strong innings as host St. Louis took a commanding 3-1 lead in the National League Championship Series.

Wainwright (1-0) allowed one run on four hits with no walks for the Cardinals, who only need to win one of the next three games to advance to the World Series against the Detroit Tigers.

The Cardinals scored two runs on three hits and a walk in the first inning against Tim Lincecum (0-1), who was making his first start of the postseason after three impressive relief appearances.

Hunter Pence hit his first home run of the playoffs in the second inning, but the Giants failed to score when Angel Pagan tripled to lead off the third. San Francisco has stranded 14 runners and gone 1-for-12 with men in scoring position in their last two games.

St. Louis knocked Lincecum out of the game in the fifth after Holliday and Molina each singled in runs to give the Cardinals a 4-1 lead. Lincecum allowed four runs on six hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings.

Jay doubled in two runs in the sixth and the Cardinals drew clear with two more runs in the seventh. Pablo Sandoval crushed a two-run homer off Fernando Salas in the ninth for the Giants, who were outhit 12-6.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Cardinals RF Carlos Beltran sat out the game with a strained left knee and is listed as day-to-day. ….Posey, who led the NL with a .336 average this season, went hitless in four at-bats and is 2-for-14 with three walks in the NLCS. … Only 11 of the 76 major-league teams that have fallen behind 3-1 have come back to win a best-of-seven series. …Giants LHP Barry Zito is expected to face RHP Lance Lynn in Game 5 on Friday in St. Louis.