Willie Stargell blew open a close game in the 6th inning, and the Houston Hoots topped the St. Louis Wizards 8-2. Stargell singled and scored off Don Sutton in the 2nd, and hit a solo home run in the 5th, but it was a 3-run double in the 6th that put the game out of reach for St. Louis. The big 6th inning started with an error by Joe Morgan that led to 4 unearned runs. Stargell finished 3 for 4 with 4 RBI. Cy Young held the Wizards to 2 runs on 7 hits in 8 innings to pick up his 1st win. Don Sutton was riding two amazing starts, but allowed 3 earned runs in 6 innings. St. Louis has now lost 6 straight, and have fallen to 8-13. Houston ended a 3-game losing streak to improve to 12-9, just 1/2 game ahead of Chicago in the National League.