ST. LOUIS -- Sonny Gray isn¡¯t used to struggling the way he has over the past couple months.

In 10 previous starts heading into the Cardinals¡¯ 4-1 win over the Padres on Thursday afternoon, the veteran right-hander logged a 5.86 ERA, with 13 home runs allowed.

That last number seemed especially stark, considering Gray yielded only eight homers in 32 starts last season, when he posted a 2.79 ERA for the Twins.

Between starts, Gray and pitching coach Dusty Blake did a little digging into the reasons.

¡°It was a good week of preparation, for sure,¡± Gray said, standing in front of his locker at Busch Stadium. ¡°Went through all the different scenarios throughout the week, just trying to draw from that.¡±

Gray didn¡¯t walk a batter, allowed only three hits and one run while striking out four Padres as St. Louis (67-67) earned a split of the four-game set with surging San Diego, which is 26-11 since the All-Star break.

The Padres (76-60) hold the second NL Wild Card spot -- eight games ahead of the Cards, who are battling for the third and final WC position.

¡°He was locked in,¡± manager Oliver Marmol said of Gray. ¡°It was hot out there, and he was on the attack. Him giving us six innings was important.¡±

The lone run charged to Gray was a leadoff home run by NL Rookie of the Year candidate Jackson Merrill on the first pitch of the fifth inning -- an 83.1 mph sweeper at the bottom of the strike zone.

¡°The homer, on the 0-0 pitch, is not something I do a ton of, and didn¡¯t truly expect him to swing through competitively,¡± Gray said. ¡°If he swung, I was OK with it.¡±

For the Cardinals, who are battling to get back into playoff contention, every win is important -- especially at home against a team ahead of them in the NL Wild Card race. And especially heading into a weekend series in the Bronx against a Yankees team with the AL¡¯s best record.

¡°[Gray¡¯s] our guy. He¡¯s going to continue to be on the attack.¡± Marmol said. ¡°He¡¯s just so prepared. You watch him day to day, you watch him prepare for his start, and it¡¯s impressive. He knows what¡¯s on the line and he¡¯s going to give us his best shot.¡±

The young players in the lineup were key, too. Masyn Winn hit a solo home run in the sixth. Alec Burleson had a hit and a walk. Victor Scott II logged a ground-rule double and a bunt single, and could have had two if not for an outstanding play by Manny Machado at third.

This was Scott¡¯s third multihit game since he was recalled from the Minors in early August, improving his average to .254 in that stretch.

¡°He¡¯s made some really good improvements when it comes to his overall swing and flattening it out,¡± Marmol said, ¡°having more of a line-drive approach, trying to stay out of the air, and using his overall game and his ability to bunt.¡±