CHICAGO -- Hot as theyve been of late, even the Chicago Cubs couldnt withstand a six-run eighth inning.Randal Grichuk hit a grand slam to cap the six-run burst and the St. Louis Cardinals stopped the Cubs 11-game winning streak, beating Chicago 8-4 on Saturday.The Cardinals took advantage of a bullpen missing injured setup men Pedro Strop and Hector Rondon. Starter Kyle Hendricks handed over a 2-2 game to Carl Edwards Jr. (0-1) to begin the eighth, and he allowed two runs on four walks, a single and a wild pitch. Joe Smith then entered and allowed Grichuks slam.Thats an example of what the team looks like without Strop and Rondon, manager Joe Maddon said. Regardless, I felt really good with C.J. in that moment. He has been outstanding.Edwards had allowed just one run over his previous 11 appearances, and his ERA ballooned from 1.42 to 3.66 on Saturday.Smith, meanwhile, has an 8.10 ERA in five games since being acquired from the Angels. The sidewinding right-hander has allowed three home runs, two to righties.I never had a problem with that in my career. I dont know (the answer), Smith said. Aggravating. Coming to a new team, you want to do well.Hendricks gave up solo homers to Jedd Gyorko and Brandon Moss but was otherwise outstanding over seven innings. He matched his career high with 12 strikeouts while allowing five hits and no walks.Just two bad changeups, really, two changeups up, Hendricks said. That was about it. Hopefully, we could keep that winning streak going, but well start a new one tomorrow.Addison Russell hit his 14th homer for the NL Central-leading Cubs.St. Louis starter and hyped prospect Luke Weaver gave up two runs on four hits in his major league debut. The 22-year-old was lifted for a pinch hitter after four innings and 85 pitches.Fellow top prospect Alex Reyes (1-0) pitched three scoreless innings of relief to get the win.You probably couldnt throw them into a hotter spot than what we just threw them into, manager Mike Matheny said. This is a tough place to pitch and watching them ... not just survive, I thought they looked terrific.The Cubs added a pair of runs in the ninth before Zach Duke recorded the final three outs.La STELLA UPDATEThe Cubs are awaiting a decision from INF Tommy La Stella, who was put on the inactive list earlier this week after failing to report to Triple-A Iowa following a demotion last month. La Stella returned to his home in New Jersey.Im still very optimistic about him coming back, but nothing has really abruptly changed right now, Maddon said. I think he was very clear how he felt. I think we were very clear back to him how we felt.TRAINERS ROOMCardinals: OF Matt Holliday (broken right thumb) was placed 15-day disabled on Saturday to make room for Weaver on the roster.Cubs: After a bullpen session Friday, Rondon (sore triceps) reported no physical complications. Maddon said the reliever was real close to a return to the active roster. ... Strop, who had an arthroscopic procedure to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee on Thursday, was back in the clubhouse and walking on crutches. Hes expected to be sidelined four to six weeks.UP NEXTCubs RHP John Lackey (9-7, 3.56 ERA) pitches the finale on Sunday. Lackey, who jumped from the Cardinals to the Cubs in the offseason, is 1-1 with a 2.70 ERA against St. Louis this season. RHP Mike Leake (8-9, 4.79) goes for the Cardinals. Jordan Oesterle Jersey . Here are his mid-season NBA awards. MVP: (KEVIN DURANT-Thunder) - Has been sensational this season and more importantly, the most consistent player in the league. Considering that his team has been without star guard Russell Westbrook and with the free agent departure of sharpshooter Kevin Martin, hes had to carry the majority of the load to not only keep his team afloat but more importantly, at an elite level. Brent Seabrook Jersey .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable. http://www.cheapblackhawkschinajerseys.com/jan-rutta-jersey/ . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. Bobby Orr Jersey . The Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling "puts an end to my dreams of being a top player," the 27-year-old Troicki said in a statement. "I worked my entire life for it, and it has been taken away from me in one afternoon by a doctor I didnt know," said Troicki, whose ranking peaked at No. Artem Anisimov Jersey . -- Jonathan Drouin gave Halifax the boost it needed to edge host Sherbrooke Phoenix 3-2 in a shootout in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League action. NEW YORK -- Angelique Kerber earned the No. 1 ranking before she stepped on court, then she went out there and looked like a top-ranked player.Kerber is into her third major final of the year after dispatching Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets at the U.S. Open. She won the first four games en route to a 6-4, 6-3 victory that set up a rematch with Karolina Pliskova, who denied the German lefty the No. 1 ranking a few weeks ago then handed it to her Thursday night.At the start of 2016, Kerber had never made a Grand Slam final. She could end it as a two-time major champ.In January, she not only advanced to the Australian Open title match but beat Serena Williams there. Kerber also played for the championship at Wimbledon, where she lost to Williams.At 28, shes the oldest woman to reach No. 1 for the first time and the first German since her idol and mentor, Steffi Graf.Kerber would have overtaken Williams for the top spot had she defeated Pliskova in the Cincinnati final Aug. 21. Instead, Pliskova won that day for a breakthrough title and has been riding the momentum ever since.After that I was just telling myself, `OK, I will get one more chance, Kerber said.Now after I can relax a little bit and try to enjoy this special night today, she added.Pliskova upset a hobbled Williams in the first semifinal Thursday, which clinched No. 1 for Kerber -- who was doing all she could not to think about ascending to the top of the rankings as she prepared to take the court.Im growing and Im not putting the prressure on my shoulders if something like this happens, she said.ddddddddddddn match point, Kerber hit a backhand that appeared to be heading long, and Wozniacki was going to let it go until she realized it might have clipped the baseline. She swung too late and sent the ball sailing out to end the match instead of challenging the call.I got a few texts, but that just made me feel worse, Wozniacki said later.But clearly should have challenged it, she added. But at the end of the day, I dont think it would have made a difference.Not the way Kerber was relentlessly hammering her shots. Wozniacki even mixed in quite a few moon balls, but to no avail. Usually content to play defense, Wozniacki found herself trying to force the issue and made an uncharacteristic 26 unforced errors.A two-time runner-up at Flushing Meadows, she arrived at this years tournament at No. 74 in the world after missing 2 1/2 months because of an ankle injury. She was seeking to become the lowest-ranked womens finalist at the U.S. Open, other than an unranked Kim Clijsters in 2009.Probably people ruled me out, but its nice to prove people wrong once again, Wozniacki said.How much longer might she keep trying to prove people wrong? Just as she had after her quarterfinal victory, Wozniacki declined to address a question about reports that her father told media she could retire in the next year or two. ' ' '