ST. LOUIS -- Harrison Bader may have spent the minimum 10 days on the injured list, but that was all the time the Cardinals required to evaluate an alternative outfield alignment.

That Plan B has now become Plan A.

Sticking with an outfield of Marcell Ozuna, Dexter Fowler and Jose Martinez again on Sunday, manager Mike Shildt watched the group help key the offense for a second consecutive day. Martinez drove in the first run, Ozuna scored another and Fowler added a late RBI double to help assure the Cardinals a series win over the Reds with a 5-2 victory at Busch Stadium.

Those contributions came one day after Ozuna muscled the Cardinals past Cincinnati with his five-RBI performance.

“You know, it’s a real blessing that we have that kind of depth and that kind of skill set,” Shildt said when asked about his outfield options. “We put our best foot forward on that particular day and go compete.”

The Cardinals were two games over .500 the day they placed Bader on the injured list because of a hamstring ailment. The club has reeled off nine wins in 12 games since and boasts the National League’s best record. And while that’s hardly a reflection of anything Bader was or was not doing while a member of the team’s everyday lineup, St. Louis' recent surge has been deep in contributions from these other three outfielders.

That's left Bader, who hasn’t started since being added back to the active roster Wednesday, and Tyler O’Neill, who came off the injured list Friday, relegated to reserve roles. For now, at least.

“I was actually expecting to go back to the bench,” Martinez said. “Harry is a great player. O’Neill is a great player. Everybody knows what they can bring to our teams. Any chance they give you, you have to take advantage. That’s been the story of my life, my whole career.”

Ozuna leads the team with 10 home runs, eight of which he’s hit since April 10. Fowler, whose on-base percentage ticked up to .419 by reaching base three more times on Sunday, has hit safely in 13 of his past 15 games. And then there’s Martinez, who, as he’s done for the last two-plus seasons, just continues to hit any time he gets an opportunity to play. He had five multi-hit games during the homestand.

That collection of offensive production is trumping the desire to get Bader’s elite defense back in the starting mix. Starting him would likely come at the expense of sitting Martinez, who has reached base safely in 17 of his last 34 plate appearances.

“He’s more than earned it,” Shildt said of sticking with Martinez. “He’s a big part of the middle part of the lineup.”

Fowler’s strong defensive play in center has also made this new look more palatable. While he doesn’t have Bader’s quickness, Fowler has made a fairly seamless transition back to his longtime position. Twice this homestand Fowler showed off a strong and accurate arm by throwing out a runner trying to score.

“Going back from right to center, I was like, ‘This is a lot of ground to cover,’” Fowler joked. “Now, it feels good. I’m a little more in the game, I feel like.”

Shildt hasn’t committed to any set script for the long-term, and he used the word “fluid” after Sunday’s game to describe the puzzle he faces each time he has a lineup to write.

But the way he navigated through both of these weekend games provides a hint at his preference. In starting the three outfielders he did, Shildt left himself O’Neill to call on in key pinch-hit spots, and he had Bader ready to enter late with a lead.

It was a sensible swap -- defense for offense -- that allows the Cardinals to maximize the skill sets of Bader and Martinez on the same day.

“I don’t think there’s any way that we can do it that it won’t elicit questions, right?” Shildt said. “We have five regulars for three spots, but the reality is they’re playing every day, and they’re contributing.”