ST. LOUIS – Hitting in front of Albert Pujols has been the perfect spot in the batting order for Chris Duncan.

The rookie had his second straight three-hit game, and scored all three times on hits by Pujols, as the St. Louis Cardinals beat up on All-Star starter Brad Penny in an 11-3 victory against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday.

“I pretty much know they’re not going to walk me, so I just try to be aggressive, and when they fall behind I usually get a pitch to hit,” Duncan said. “To be able to get some hits and have Albert drive me in is a lot of fun.”

Pujols was 4-for-5 with three RBIs, Anthony Reyes worked five solid innings and Yadier Molina had three hits and three RBIs for the Cardinals, who swept a four-game series from the Dodgers for the first time since winning a pair of doubleheaders on July 7-8, 1987.

St. Louis has won seven in a row, the team’s best streak since a nine-game run in 2004. This, after a 9-16 June.

“We really had to grind through and make sure we stayed together and not point fingers and keep our energy up, and we did a good job of that,” manager Tony La Russa said. “But this is more fun.”

Penny, who worked two innings for the National League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game and struck out the side in the first, gave up six runs and 10 hits in five innings against the Cardinals. Penny (10-3) was starting for the first time in 11 days, although he got one out last Sunday in the final game before the break.

Penny refused to use the layoff or the 93-degree heat as excuses.

“I felt fine,” he said.

Penny was looking forward to a rematch against the Cardinals on Friday in Los Angeles.

“It wasn’t Pujols that beat me, it was Duncan and that Molina kid,” Penny said. “Guys I needed to get out, I didn’t get out.”