ST. LOUIS, Mo. (WMDJ) — The Cincinnati Reds let another late lead slip away Saturday, falling to the St. Louis Cardinals 6-5 at Busch Stadium.

St. Louis jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning on RBI singles from Victor Scott II and Masyn Winn. The Reds answered in the third when two runs scored on a Cardinals fielding error before Spencer Steer tied the game with a sacrifice fly.

Cincinnati took its first lead in the fourth inning when Matt McLain launched a two-run home run to left field, putting the Reds ahead 5-3.

The Cardinals chipped away in the fifth on a solo homer by Jordan Walker before completing the comeback in the eighth. Lars Nootbaar delivered the decisive blow with a two-run home run off reliever Sam Moll, giving St. Louis a 6-5 advantage.

McLain drove in two runs with his sixth homer of the season, while Blake Dunn collected three hits. Dane Myers added two hits as the Reds finished with nine hits in the loss.

The game ended with the Reds rallied in the ninth inning to get the bases loaded with two outs and Sal Stewart at the plate. Got to a full count at ended with Stewart hitting a ground ball for the out. 

The Cardinals out-hit Cincinnati 12-9 and erased a Reds lead for the second straight game.

With the loss, Cincinnati falls to 31-32 on the season and drops below .500 for the first time since Opening Day. The Reds will try to avoid a three-game sweep Sunday afternoon in St. Louis. Rhett Lowder is scheduled to start for Cincinnati. First pitch is set for 2:15 p.m., with the Inside Pitch pregame show beginning at 1:45 p.m. on WMDJ FM 100.1.