Jon Lester was simply stellar throughout 7 2/3 innings of World Series Game 5, holding the Cardinals to one run in a 3-1 victory at Busch Stadium. Every bit as sharp as advertised, Lester bulled his way through one of the most fearsome lineups in baseball.

The Road to the World Series pointed to Massachusetts after the Red Sox beat the Cardinals, 3-1, in Game 5 of the 109th Fall Classic on Monday night to move one win away from the 2013 championship. Fenway Park hosts Game 6 on Wednesday night.

Adam Wainwright, battered in Game 1 and befuddled by a total breakdown of his pitching mechanics, recovered in Game 5 to work seven quality innings, aided by 10 strikeouts. But he gave up a go-ahead RBI double in the seventh on a curveball to Red Sox catcher David Ross, and the Cardinals couldn’t recover.

When this 109th World Series shifted from Boston to St. Louis, Allen Craig talked with Cardinals manager Mike Matheny about the prospects for a Game 5 start at first base. Given how he handled extended infield grounders before the game and the club’s need for pop, Craig indeed got the start but grounded out three times in the Cards’ loss.

The next chapter of the Red Sox’s World Series saga will be written Wednesday night. The details remain to be revealed, but the stakes are simple: A Sox win gives them their third World Series championship in the last 10 years, while St. Louis needs a victory to force a decisive Game 7.

Matt Holliday’s World Series production would be memorable if it weren’t so easy to forget. Holliday homered off Red Sox lefty Jon Lester in the bottom of the fourth inning Monday. But that was the Cardinals’ only run in a 3-1 loss in Game 5, which left them having to either win the next two at Fenway or watch Boston celebrate.

Red Sox manager John Farrell addresses the media after Game 5 of the World Series.

A look at some notable facts and figures from the Boston Red Sox’s 3-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 5 of the World Series at Busch Stadium on Monday night.

Cardinals manager Mike Matheny addresses the media after Game 5 of the World Series.

Harry Connick Jr. created quite a stir when he strode onto the field at Busch Stadium to perform “The Star-Spangled Banner” prior to Game 5 of the World Series on Monday night. The pregame ceremony also included the ceremonial first pitch, thrown by Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith, whose game-winning homer in Game 5 of the NLCS is still one of the Cardinals’ most memorable postseason moments.

A 12-person panel handed out the 2013 Fielding Bible Awards on Monday to three repeat winners and six first-timers.

A day after making dubious baseball history, Cardinals rookie Kolten Wong found himself engulfed by unconditional support inside the clubhouse on Monday at Busch Stadium.

Brad Ausmus has neither managed nor coached in the big leagues in three seasons since his 18-year playing career ended. On Monday, he was at Comerica Park, talking about why his first shot should be at the helm of Detroit.

The name has changed, but the excitement of the sheer star power that will be on the field remains the same. The Fall Stars Game, formerly known as the Rising Stars Game, will take place for the eighth year, on Saturday in Surprise, Ariz.

Miguel Cabrera will require surgery to repair a severe groin strain that bothered him down the stretch this season and into the playoffs. The Tigers confirmed the appointment with hernia specialist Dr. William Meyers for this week.

The White Sox have called a news conference for 11 a.m. CT on Tuesday at U.S. Cellular Field to officially announce the signing of free-agent first baseman Jose Abreu at a reported six-year, $68-million deal.

A look at Saturday’s lineups for Game 3 of the World Series between the Red Sox and Cardinals at Busch Stadium (FOX, 7:30 ET, first pitch 8:07).