Griffin Canning tossed six solid innings and combined with three relievers on a three-hitter for the host New York Mets, who defeated the St. Louis Cardinals 4-1 on Thursday night in the opener of a four-game series.

Mark Vientos homered for the Mets, who scored all their runs in the second inning while snapping a two-game skid. Francisco Lindor had three singles, including an RBI hit, while Brett Baty had a run-scoring single among his two hits.

Starling Marte and Tyrone Taylor also had hits for New York.

Brendan Donovan had an RBI single for the Cardinals, who have lost two of three. Donovan is batting .460 (23-of-50) during a 13-game hitting streak.

Victor Scott II and Alec Burleson had the Cardinals’ other hits.

Canning (2-1), who was scheduled to start Wednesday but was scratched with an illness, gave up one run on three hits and two walks while striking out a season-high eight.

Reed Garrett walked one in the seventh and AJ Minter threw a perfect eighth before Edwin Diaz notched his fourth save by striking out two in a hitless ninth.

St. Louis starter Andre Pallante (2-1) took the loss after giving up four runs on seven hits and no walks while striking out two over six innings.

The Mets scored four runs in the second, including three times with two outs. Vientos hit his first homer of the season, a leadoff shot to right before Starling Marte doubled with one out and scored on a two-out bloop single by Baty.

Taylor followed with a single and Baty raced home on Lindor’s single. Lindor then got stuck between first and second when William Contreras cut off the throw from right fielder Jordan Walker, but Lindor stayed in a rundown long enough to allow Taylor to score from third.

The Cardinals built their run in the third, when Scott led off with a single, stole second, took third on a wild pitch by Canning and scored on Donovan’s hit.