Jaime Garcia pitched seven sharp innings and Jon Jay drove in two runs to help the St. Louis Cardinals improve their playoff chances with a 4-0 victory over the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.

The Cardinals won their fourth straight and extended their winning streak over the last-place Astros to a franchise-best 10 games. They also moved 4 1/2 games ahead of Milwaukee in the race for the second NL wild card. The Brewers lost in Cincinnati 4-2.

The Dodgers, who played later in San Diego, began the day 3 1/2 back.

With seven games remaining, St. Louis is closing in on the NL’s final available postseason spot. Atlanta clinched at least a wild-card berth by beating Miami 4-3 earlier Tuesday night.