Adam Wainwright worked seven solid innings for his first win since September 2010, and the St. Louis Cardinals got big nights at the plate from David Freese and Matt Holliday to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 10-7 on Tuesday.

Freese’s sixth home run and third in five games was a tiebreaking, three-run shot off Charlie Morton (1-2) in the fifth. Holliday homered in the sixth off Jared Hughes to cap a three-hit night with two RBIs.

Allen Craig had two hits and an RBI in his season debut after rehabbing from knee surgery performed last fall shortly after he belted three homers in the World Series. Rafael Furcal had two hits, including his first homer _ a two-run shot off Tony Watson in the seventh that made it 10-4.

Wainwright (1-3) was hurt only by the long ball in his fifth start of the season, allowing five hits but giving up two-run homers to Jose Tabata in the third and Pedro Alvarez in the seventh. The right-hander totaled 39 wins from 2009-10 but missed last season following reconstructive elbow surgery, and became the last member of the rotation to get a win this year.

His previous victory was his 20th of the 2010 season.

In his first four starts, the Cardinals didn’t score while Wainwright was in the game. This time, he left with a 7-4 cushion. Wainwright’s ERA remains unsightly at 6.75, the highest at any point during his career as a starter, but he’s made strides the last two outings, with the Cubs getting one run in six innings April 24.

The Pirates topped five runs, their season best for the first 21 games, for the second straight night after beating Atlanta 9-3 on Monday. But they committed four errors, matching their season worst April 20 also against the Cardinals in a 4-1 loss, leading to four unearned runs.

Tabata ended a 140-at-bat homer drought dating to Aug. 17, 2011, against the Cardinals’ Kyle Lohse. Alvarez was the first Pirates player to reach double figures in RBIs with his sixth homer and a run-scoring single giving him 12 on the year. Garret Jones has 10 RBIs after an RBI single off Fernando Salas in the eighth cut the deficit to three.

Jason Motte worked the ninth for his fourth save in five chances.

Plate umpire C.B. Buckner left the game due to illness during a pitching change with one out in the bottom of the seventh and a crew of three finished the game, with second base ump Dan Iassogna moving behind the plate. Buckner briefly went to the St. Louis clubhouse for attention during a break between innings before calling it a night.

Morton was the toughest pitcher to homer against in the majors last season, allowing just six in 171 2-3 innings, with five by left-handed hitters. Freese’s sixth of the season was the second in 21 1-3 innings this year, both by right-handed hitters. Ramon Hernandez of Colorado connected in Morton’s previous start.

Wainwright has allowed six homers in 26 2-3 innings, twice as many as anyone else in the rotation. In 2010, he permitted 15 homers in 230 1-3 innings.

NOTES: Lance Lynn (4-0, 1.33 ERA), off to a great start as the stand-in for injured ace Chris Carpenter, opposes A.J. Burnett (1-1, 1.38) in the second game of the three-game series Wednesday. … Slow-footed Cardinals C Yadier Molina is 4 for 4 in steals. He caught Morton so unaware in the fourth there was no throw and was on the front end of a double steal in the seventh that prompted a wild throw from catcher Rod Barajas, allowing a run to score. … Morton did not miss injured Cardinals 1B Lance Berkman, who is 8 for 14 with two homers and six RBIs against him. … Jon Jay and Molina each had two hits, and both have nine hits in the first four games of a six-game homestand.

What a difference a year makes.

The St. Louis Cardinals have started the 2012 season right where they left off in 2011. St. Louis has won seven of eight series in April. The only series loss thus far has been to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The two losses suffered at the hands of the lowly Teddy Bears were by one run each in the Cubs’ final at-bat in both games.

This time last year, Cardinals fans such as myself were wondering when the offense was going to show up. I was also trying to figure out who was going to step up in the starting rotation in place of the injured Adam Wainwright.

Despite a new manager and lack of Albert Pujols, the Cardinals are turning heads. After four weeks in 2011, St. Louis was 12-10. The Cardinals were just a half-game up on the rest of the National League Central Division. This was after they started the year 6-7 without much offense. The pitching rotation was being held together by duct tape thanks to Kyle McClellan moving from a reliever to a starting role. Yet there was nothing remarkable about the team.

By the time mid-May rolled around, the Cardinals were 26-20, six games over .500. Yet they only had that half-game divisional lead.

A year later, it’s a different story. St. Louis stormed out of the starting gate. The Cards have already soared to six games over .500 and have had a four-game lead in the Central. All St. Louis has to do for the next five months is keep winning and the playoffs are a sure bet.

St. Louis is in the top five in team batting average in Major League Baseball. The Cardinals are first in the National League in batting. St. Louis is also in the top five in runs and on-base percentage. St. Louis has gotten out to early leads and kept them.

Despite ace Wainwright starting 0-3, the pitching staff has been stellar. Only the Washington Nationals have a better staff ERA of 30 teams. St. Louis is an MLB-best 1.02 in walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP).

The Cardinals have three starters in the top six in ERA in the National League. Unlike last year when the offense didn’t give the rotation much help, now starters get out to good leads and hold them.

It’s just a month into the season. Yet I can’t help wondering if the Cardinals are on their way to repeating. Fans will have a better gauge of what St. Louis is like after it plays the likes of the Nationals, Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers.

William Browning was born in St. Louis and is a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

Milwaukee starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo is well aware of his struggles against the St. Louis Cardinals.

He simply doesn’t know how to correct the problem.

Gallardo’s woes continued Friday night as he gave up eight earned runs in a two-inning stint during a 13-1 loss at St. Louis. Gallardo fell to 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA in 13 career regular-season starts against the Cardinals.

“He wasn’t locating the ball at all,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “Everything went wrong.”

Gallardo (1-2) surrendered just four earned runs in three seven-inning starts prior to Friday’s contest. But he gave up eight runs on seven hits in the third inning. He also gave up six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings of an 11-5 loss to St. Louis on April 6.

“In the two or three starts I had before tonight, I just went out there and pitched my game,” Gallardo said. “I wasn’t thinking about too much. Today, I tried to do everything. I tried to do a lot more than I am capable of.”

Roenicke says the problem could be mental.

“Any time a team hits you like that, there are a lot of mental doubts,” Roenicke said.

The St. Louis hitters gave Jake Westbrook plenty of offensive support this time around setting season highs for runs in an inning.

St. Louis won for the eighth time in its last 12. Milwaukee has lost three of five.

Westbrook (3-1) gave up seven hits, struck out five and did not walk a batter. He has allowed two earned runs or less in all four of his starts this season.

Westbrook, who lowered his ERA to 1.30, was not given much help in a 2-0 loss at Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Cardinals managed just five hits in being shutout for the second time this season. Westbrook gave up two runs on seven hits but suffered his first loss of the season.

The St. Louis hitters made up for that goose-egg in a big way Friday.

“The offense was huge for us, the runs helped a lot,” Westbrook said. “I was able to throw strikes, get ahead of guys, keep the pitch count down and get deep in the game.”

Jon Jay had three hits and drove in three runs to pace a 15-hit attack. Skip Schumaker added two hits and three RBIs, and Matt Holliday had three hits and knocked in a pair.

Jay and Matt Carpenter drove in two runs each in the third as the Cardinals sent 12 batters to the plate.

Carlos Beltran and David Freese drove in Jay and Holliday to start the eight-run outburst. Yadier Molina drew a walk and Carpenter ripped a 3-2 pitch off the center-field wall to push the lead to 6-1. Schumaker followed with a run-scoring hit and Jay added a two-run single. Holliday capped off the frame with a run-scoring single to right.

“We just go out there and have good at-bats,” Jay said. “You just try and keep the line moving and that’s why we’ve been able to do some things.”

The eight-run outburst seemed to energize Westbrook. He allowed just three hits over four innings following the explosion.

St. Louis last scored eight runs in the fifth inning of a 13-5 win over Chicago on July 30, 2011.

The Cardinals have scored nine runs or more five times this season.

Schumaker, who has five hits in his last 12 at-bats, was happy to give Westbrook the necessary support.

“Luckily we gave him a little cushion,” Schumaker said. “It seems like we’re getting seven innings out of him every single time. He’s on an incredible run. Hopefully it keeps going.”

St. Louis pounded out 11 hits over the first three innings on the way to a 10-1 lead.

“All the way through the lineup guys really swung the bats well,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “It was just a good offensive day. It was fun to watch.”

Milwaukee jumped to a 1-0 lead on successive singles by Nyjer Morgan, Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez in the first. Westbrook then got Corey Hart to ground into an inning-ending double play.

“He’s on a roll,” Roenicke said of Westbrook. “He’s throwing the ball down in the zone real well. He gets ground balls when he needs to.”

St. Louis starting pitchers have recorded 12 wins the season, the highest total in both leagues.

NOTES: Milwaukee had given up the first run in its previous eight games before scoring in the top of the first Friday. … Molina will be presented with his fourth consecutive Gold Glove award prior to Saturday’s game. … Kyle Lohse (3-0, 0.99 ERA) will face Milwaukee’s Marco Estrada (0-0, 2.45) in the second game of the three-game set on Saturday. … The Cardinals, who began a six-game homestand Friday, played 13 of their first 19 games on the road. … Carpenter leads the Cardinals with 10 RBI at home. … Ramirez has hit safely in his last five games.

ST. LOUIS
– Milwaukee starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo is well aware of his struggles against the St. Louis Cardinals.

He simply doesn’t know how to correct the problem.

Gallardo’s woes continued Friday night as he gave up eight earned runs in a two-inning stint during a 13-1 loss at St. Louis. Gallardo fell to 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA in 13 career regular-season starts against the Cardinals.

“He wasn’t locating the ball at all,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “Everything went wrong.”

Gallardo (1-2) surrendered just four earned runs in three seven-inning starts prior to Friday’s contest. But he gave up eight runs on seven hits in the third inning. He also gave up six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings of an 11-5 loss to St. Louis on April 6.

“In the two or three starts I had before tonight, I just went out there and pitched my game,” Gallardo said. “I wasn’t thinking about too much. Today, I tried to do everything. I tried to do a lot more than I am capable of.”

Roenicke says the problem could be mental.

“Any time a team hits you like that, there are a lot of mental doubts,” Roenicke said.

The St. Louis hitters gave Jake Westbrook plenty of offensive support this time around setting season highs for runs in an inning.

St. Louis won for the eighth time in its last 12. Milwaukee has lost three of five.

Westbrook (3-1) gave up seven hits, struck out five and did not walk a batter. He has allowed two earned runs or less in all four of his starts this season.

Westbrook, who lowered his ERA to 1.30, was not given much help in a 2-0 loss at Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Cardinals managed just five hits in being shutout for the second time this season. Westbrook gave up two runs on seven hits but suffered his first loss of the season.

The St. Louis hitters made up for that goose-egg in a big way Friday.

“The offense was huge for us, the runs helped a lot,” Westbrook said. “I was able to throw strikes, get ahead of guys, keep the pitch count down and get deep in the game.”

Jon Jay had three hits and drove in three runs to pace a 15-hit attack. Skip Schumaker added two hits and three RBIs, and Matt Holliday had three hits and knocked in a pair.

Jay and Matt Carpenter drove in two runs each in the third as the Cardinals sent 12 batters to the plate.

Carlos Beltran and David Freese drove in Jay and Holliday to start the eight-run outburst. Yadier Molina drew a walk and Carpenter ripped a 3-2 pitch off the center-field wall to push the lead to 6-1. Schumaker followed with a run-scoring hit and Jay added a two-run single. Holliday capped off the frame with a run-scoring single to right.

“We just go out there and have good at-bats,” Jay said. “You just try and keep the line moving and that’s why we’ve been able to do some things.”

The eight-run outburst seemed to energize Westbrook. He allowed just three hits over four innings following the explosion.

St. Louis last scored eight runs in the fifth inning of a 13-5 win over Chicago on July 30, 2011.

The Cardinals have scored nine runs or more five times this season.

Schumaker, who has five hits in his last 12 at-bats, was happy to give Westbrook the necessary support.

“Luckily we gave him a little cushion,” Schumaker said. “It seems like we’re getting seven innings out of him every single time. He’s on an incredible run. Hopefully it keeps going.”

St. Louis pounded out 11 hits over the first three innings on the way to a 10-1 lead.

“All the way through the lineup guys really swung the bats well,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “It was just a good offensive day. It was fun to watch.”

Milwaukee jumped to a 1-0 lead on successive singles by Nyjer Morgan, Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez in the first. Westbrook then got Corey Hart to ground into an inning-ending double play.

“He’s on a roll,” Roenicke said of Westbrook. “He’s throwing the ball down in the zone real well. He gets ground balls when he needs to.”

St. Louis starting pitchers have recorded 12 wins the season, the highest total in both leagues.

NOTES: Milwaukee had given up the first run in its previous eight games before scoring in the top of the first Friday. … Molina will be presented with his fourth consecutive Gold Glove award prior to Saturday’s game. … Kyle Lohse (3-0, 0.99 ERA) will face Milwaukee’s Marco Estrada (0-0, 2.45) in the second game of the three-game set on Saturday. … The Cardinals, who began a six-game homestand Friday, played 13 of their first 19 games on the road. … Carpenter leads the Cardinals with 10 RBI at home. … Ramirez has hit safely in his last five games.

ST. LOUIS — Milwaukee starting pitcher Yovani Gallardo is well aware of his struggles against the St. Louis Cardinals.

He simply doesn’t know how to correct the problem.

Gallardo’s woes continued Friday night as he gave up eight earned runs in a two-inning stint during a 13-1 loss at St. Louis. Gallardo fell to 1-9 with a 7.05 ERA in 13 career regular-season starts against the Cardinals.

“He wasn’t locating the ball at all,” manager Ron Roenicke said. “Everything went wrong.”

Gallardo (1-2) surrendered just four earned runs in three seven-inning starts prior to Friday’s contest. But he gave up eight runs on seven hits in the third inning. He also gave up six earned runs in 3 2/3 innings of an 11-5 loss to St. Louis on April 6.

“In the two or three starts I had before tonight, I just went out there and pitched my game,” Gallardo said. “I wasn’t thinking about too much. Today, I tried to do everything. I tried to do a lot more than I am capable of.”

Roenicke says the problem could be mental.

“Any time a team hits you like that, there are a lot of mental doubts,” Roenicke said.

The St. Louis hitters gave Jake Westbrook plenty of offensive support this time around setting season highs for runs in an inning.

St. Louis won for the eighth time in its last 12. Milwaukee has lost three of five.

Westbrook (3-1) gave up seven hits, struck out five and did not walk a batter. He has allowed two earned runs or less in all four of his starts this season.

Westbrook, who lowered his ERA to 1.30, was not given much help in a 2-0 loss at Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Cardinals managed just five hits in being shutout for the second time this season. Westbrook gave up two runs on seven hits but suffered his first loss of the season.

The St. Louis hitters made up for that goose-egg in a big way Friday.

“The offense was huge for us, the runs helped a lot,” Westbrook said. “I was able to throw strikes, get ahead of guys, keep the pitch count down and get deep in the game.”

Jon Jay had three hits and drove in three runs to pace a 15-hit attack. Skip Schumaker added two hits and three RBIs, and Matt Holliday had three hits and knocked in a pair.

Jay and Matt Carpenter drove in two runs each in the third as the Cardinals sent 12 batters to the plate.

Carlos Beltran and David Freese drove in Jay and Holliday to start the eight-run outburst. Yadier Molina drew a walk and Carpenter ripped a 3-2 pitch off the center-field wall to push the lead to 6-1. Schumaker followed with a run-scoring hit and Jay added a two-run single. Holliday capped off the frame with a run-scoring single to right.

“We just go out there and have good at-bats,” Jay said. “You just try and keep the line moving and that’s why we’ve been able to do some things.”

The eight-run outburst seemed to energize Westbrook. He allowed just three hits over four innings following the explosion.

St. Louis last scored eight runs in the fifth inning of a 13-5 win over Chicago on July 30, 2011.

The Cardinals have scored nine runs or more five times this season.

Schumaker, who has five hits in his last 12 at-bats, was happy to give Westbrook the necessary support.

“Luckily we gave him a little cushion,” Schumaker said. “It seems like we’re getting seven innings out of him every single time. He’s on an incredible run. Hopefully it keeps going.”

St. Louis pounded out 11 hits over the first three innings on the way to a 10-1 lead.

“All the way through the lineup guys really swung the bats well,” St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. “It was just a good offensive day. It was fun to watch.”

Milwaukee jumped to a 1-0 lead on successive singles by Nyjer Morgan, Ryan Braun and Aramis Ramirez in the first. Westbrook then got Corey Hart to ground into an inning-ending double play.

“He’s on a roll,” Roenicke said of Westbrook. “He’s throwing the ball down in the zone real well. He gets ground balls when he needs to.”

St. Louis starting pitchers have recorded 12 wins the season, the highest total in both leagues.

NOTES: Milwaukee had given up the first run in its previous eight games before scoring in the top of the first Friday. … Molina will be presented with his fourth consecutive Gold Glove award prior to Saturday’s game. … Kyle Lohse (3-0, 0.99 ERA) will face Milwaukee’s Marco Estrada (0-0, 2.45) in the second game of the three-game set on Saturday. … The Cardinals, who began a six-game homestand Friday, played 13 of their first 19 games on the road. … Carpenter leads the Cardinals with 10 RBI at home. … Ramirez has hit safely in his last five games.

I know it’s early in the 2012 Major League Baseball season and there is plenty of baseball yet to played. Yet the surprise of the St. Louis Cardinals has been rookie Matt Carpenter. His batting average is .321 over 28 at bats in 11 games.

Although not as proficient as Steve Lombardozzi of the Washington Nationals with a .471 batting average thus far, Carpenter gets my early vote for the NL’s Rookie of the Year.

Carpenter’s .321 average is a bit misleading. Until an 0-for-4 performance April 19 in a 6-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, his BA was .375 with a slugging percentage of .750.

Lombardozzi may have a better over average, but Carpenter gets more timely hits. The 11 RBIs are tops in the National League among rookies, according to MLB’s top rookie tracker. The last time Carpenter had such a high batting average was for the AA Springfield Cardinals, with a .316 average over 105 games in 2010 in the Texas League.

The absence of Albert Pujols is barely registering. David Freese leads the Cardinals with 13 RBIs and has a scorching .375 average. The second place guy in RBI totals is the up-and-comer Carpenter, who had just 15 at bats in seven games a year ago.

The key for Carpenter will be to stay healthy. For some reason, younger players haven’t been able to stay off the DL. Last year, Freese and Allen Craig struggled through injuries. Both guys are young talent who were key to the Cardinals’ World Series win.

This time last season, fans were complaining of a lack of hitting on the part of St. Louis. Pujols was in a slump. NBC Sports showed video of then-manager Tony La Russa quitting a press conference early after he felt there were enough questions about the Cardinals’ lack of offense.

Those questions are gone. The Cardinals lead the National League with a team batting average of .293. The next closest National League team are the Colorado Rockies with a .267 average.

Carpenter is second in RBIs on the NL Central Division leaders. For early buzz on the Rookie of the Year, Carpenter has got to be considered a favorite.

Even better is that no one predicted the St. Louis Cardinals to do this well so early in the season. Pitcher Adam Wainwright leads the team in strikeouts yet hasn’t won a game. Wainwright has been tagged for three of the four losses thus far on the season.

But the story of the Cardinals thus far hasn’t been pitching or defense. The offense has come alive thanks in part to some unlikely early-season production from an unheralded rookie.

William Browning was born in St. Louis and is a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

It was supposed to be a magical afternoon at the ballpark.

On a day when the St. Louis Cardinals raised their 2011 championship banner before a sellout crowd at Busch Stadium, starting pitcher Adam Wainwright threw what he calls the worst game of his career as the Chicago Cubs beat the Cardinals 9-5.

Wainwright (0-2), who was making his first start at Busch Stadium since 2010, gave up four runs in the 1st inning. David DeJesus started the game with a double, then Darwin Barney and Starlin Castro came up with back to back singles. After Alfonso Soriano flied to right, third baseman Ian Stewart clubbed a three run homer that sailed over the right field wall to put Chicago ahead 4-0.

It got worse for Wainwright, who gave up two walks and a single to load the bases in the top of the 4th, then served up a pitch that first baseman Bryan LaHair hit just over the wall in left-center field for an 8-0 Cubs lead.

Chicago made it a 9-0 game in the 4th as a run scored on a double play ball off the bat of Soriano.

But the Cards gave the Opening Day crowd something to cheer about in the bottom of the 5th inning, sending nine batters to the plate against Cubs starter Jeff Samardzija (2-0) and scoring five runs to get back in the game. Pinch hitter Shane Robinson started the big inning with a pinch hit single. One out later, Jon Jay singled. Then, with two outs, Carlos Beltran, David Freese and Yadier Molina singled. Former Springfield Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter then tripled to center, scoring Freese and Molina before Samardzija got Daniel Descalso to strike out.

St. Louis couldn’t get much going against the Cubs bullpen, managing just two doubles after the 5th inning outburst.

Wainwright, who’s never allowed as many as eight runs in a game at home, makes no excuses for his performance. He was asked by reporters in the clubhouse after the game if the long rain delay hurt his preparation. “It can if you let it,” Wainwright said. “I’ve done that numerous times in my career. I felt like I was prepared going out there. I felt like that didn’t have any effect on me.” 

Wainwright, while anxious to get right back out to the mound, says he will use the time before his next start wisely. “The hardest part about starting is after a bad day, you’ve got to sit on it for four days. The thing I like about that is I have four days to really get prepared where I can clear my brain, make some adjustments and get ready for my next start.” 

Cardinals Manager Mike Matheny says there’s nothing in Wainwright’s outing that alarms him. ”It’s just one of those days you write off,” Matheny said. “It wasn’t his best stuff. He knows that. We’ve seen so many positive things from him this year already and he’s been so far ahead of what any of the expectations were. We know there’s a lot of good things yet to be seen, but today was just one of those things you’ve got to step back, gather yourself, and figure out what you’ve got to do different.”  

The game, which was delayed at the start by two hours and 42 minutes, was played in cool, wet conditions before 46,882 fans, the second largest regular season attendance in the six year history of Busch Stadium.

All of the living Cardinals Hall Of Famers took part in the pre-game ceremonies, including 91 year old Stan Musial, who shook the players hands as they were brought onto the field in a motorcade.

The Cardinals drop to 5-3 on the season. They’ll be back in action Saturday at 12:05 p.m. Lance Lynn (1-0) will take the mound for St. Louis. He’ll be opposed by Chicago’s Chris Volstad.

MIAMI — The sellout crowd in the Miami Marlins’ new ballpark cheered the introduction of their starters, who were accompanied by women dressed as Latin showgirls. There was another roar for Muhammad Ali, who delivered the first pitch.

Then Kyle Lohse and the World Series champion St. Louis Cardinals went to work, and the place grew quiet.

Lohse held Miami hitless until the seventh inning and pitched into the eighth to help the Cardinals win the first game in Marlins Park, 4-1 Wednesday night.

The Marlins’ new animated home-run sculpture never budged. It was the fourth inning before they even managed a baserunner, and by the time they scored in the eighth, they trailed 4-0.

“It’s a good ballpark for a pitcher, obviously,” Lohse said. “It’s pretty hard to get it out.”

New Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen was asked if the team’s new home is a pitcher’s park.

“For Lohse, yes,” Guillen said. “But it’s too early to say how the ballpark is going to play.”

The crowd of 36,601 included newly retired Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, who quietly rooted for his former team from the press box.

He watched Lohse retire the first 10 batters before hitting Emilio Bonifacio with a pitch. The runner was erased when Hanley Ramirez grounded into a double play.

Newcomer Jose Reyes singled for Miami’s first hit to start the seventh, and Omar Infante scored the Marlins’ run in the eighth on John Buck’s double. Lohse went 7 1-3 innings, allowing only two hits and one run.

The right-hander led the Cardinals last year in victories and ERA but got the call for opening day only because ace Chris Carpenter is sidelined with nerve irritation that has caused weakness in his pitching shoulder.

David Freese, the World Series MVP, had a two-run single in the first inning to give Lohse the cushion he needed. Freese and Rafael Furcal each had three of the Cardinals’ 13 hits.

“Tonight was fun,” Freese said. “It’s always nice to get the season going and to open up here, beautiful ballpark, the fans were excited about it and so were we.”

Jason Motte earned the save with a one-hit ninth, completing the four-hitter and sending the Cardinals to the clubhouse to celebrate first-year manager Mike Matheny’s debut win.

“We gave him a little water shower,” Lohse said. “Most people go with the adult beverage but we went with the water.”

Things were so bad for Guillen’s team that Marlins ace Josh Johnson recorded the ballpark’s first strikeout — but as a hitter.

Johnson allowed 10 hits and three runs in six innings. The 2010 NL ERA leader was pitching for the first time since last May 16, when shoulder inflammation ended his year.

Ramirez, making the switch to third base from shortstop, had an especially rough night. He drew scattered boos when he pulled up rather than dive for a grounder to his left, and he failed to throw out Furcal on a bunt that went for a hit. Ramirez also struck out with a runner aboard in the ninth to finish 0 for 4.

Both teams began the season with a new look. The Marlins, anticipating better attendance and higher revenue in their new home, acquired three All-Stars in an offseason spending spree. The Cardinals, coming off a thrilling late-season charge to the World Series title, lost slugger Albert Pujols to free agency and La Russa to retirement.

La Russa visited with Matheny before the game. Also on hand was baseball Commissioner Bud Selig, who said his reaction to the ballpark was, “Wow.”

Among the eye-catching features is the colorful home-run sculpture beyond the center-field wall, but the Marlins failed to activate it, although Giancarlo Stanton did send two flies to the warning track.

The retractable roof, which is expected to be closed for all but about 10 games, was opened 30 minutes before the first pitch, revealing a nearly full moon on a 79-degree evening. Surprise guest Ali delivered the first pitch, which Ramirez gently took from the champ’s hand.

The first pitch from Johnson to Rafael Furcal caught the outside corner for a called strike. Furcal then grounded to new shortstop Reyes for the first out.

Cardinals newcomer Carlos Beltran followed with the first hit, a sharp single to right. He took third on a double by Lance Berkman, and Freese drove in both runs with a two-out single.

Furcal’s two-out RBI single in the second made it 3-0, and a 50-foot groundout by Daniel Descalso brought home an insurance run in the eighth.

NOTES: The Marlins drew 41,237 for last year’s home opener, then went on to finish last in the NL in attendance for the seventh consecutive year. … Before the game, Guillen said Ramirez has a chance to be the NL MVP. … The only no-hitter on opening day was thrown in 1940 by Hall of Famer Bob Feller for the Cleveland Indians against the Chicago White Sox. … Lohse pitched five shutout innings in his only other opening-day start, which was in 2008.

It was a sea of red, and for many of the 10,079 fans at Hammons Field Monday night, it didn’t matter which team won. The St. Louis Cardinals did win, beating the Springfield Cardinals 3-2 in an exhibition game played before both teams start regular season play.

The game was nothing short of a pitcher’s dual between St. Louis starter Trevor Rosenthal, who threw four hitless innings and struck out four, and Tyler Lyons, who allowed only one hit in four innings of work. Rosenthal will start the regular season in a Springfield uniform.

St. Louis plated the first runs in the top of the 6th as Vance Albitz and Matt Carpenter had back to back singles to lead off the frame. Catcher Tony Cruz’ RBI groundout gave the Cards a 1-0 lead. Rightfielder Erik Komatsu, who made the big league club out of spring training, hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield to make it 2-0 St. Louis.

Ronny Gil, who’s slated to open the season at Class A Palm Beach, hit the only home run of the game, a solo shot to right field in the top of the 7th inning that at the time gave the parent club a 3-0 lead.

Turns out, St. Louis would need every run it earned, as Springfield put two runs on the board in the bottom of the 7th as Oscar Taveras tripled in Kolten Wong and Xavier Scruggs drove in Taveras with an RBI groundout.

Hard throwing Carlos Martinez pitched the final four innings for St. Louis and earned the save while striking out three. Martinez will open the season at Class A Palm Beach.

World Series MVP David Freese received a standing ovation when he stepped to the plate in the first inning. Freese and Matt Holliday played only a few innings each.

The game was played in 2:06. The announced attendance of 10,079 is the third largest crowd to ever see a baseball game at Hammons Field.

St. Louis opens defense of its World Championship when it takes on the Miami Marlins in the first regular seaon game at Marlins Park Wednesday night at 6:05. Springfield opens its regular season Thursday night at 7:08 against the Frisco Roughriders at Hammons Field.

Read More: Carlos Beltran (RF – STL), Gio Gonzalez (P – WAS), Jaime Garcia (P – STL), Shane Robinson (CF – STL), Tony Cruz (C – STL), Matt Carpenter (3B – STL), Washington Nationals, St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals were impressive at the plate and in the field on Thursday afternoon in dispatching the Washington Nationals 9-0. Jaime Garcia pitched five scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and striking out nine Nats hitters.

Related: St. Louis Cardinals Rank No. 11 In Forbes’ Team Value Rankings

Washington starter Gio Gonzalez had a terrible outing, and by the time he exited the game in the fourth inning, the game was essentially over. Gonzalez allowed eight runs on 10 hits and four walks.

Matt Carpenter and Tony Cruz were 3-3 on the day, while Carlos Beltran and Shane Robinson each had two-hit games.

For more on the St. Louis Cardinals, head over to Viva El Birdos, SB Nation’s Cards blog. Stay tuned to SB Nation St. Louis for more breaking news and updates concerning all matters St. Louis sports, and MLB Daily Dish for all your MLB rumors and news.

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) Marlins newcomer Mark Buehrle was tagged for five runs in 2 1-3 innings and the St. Louis Cardinals defeated Miami 5-0 Friday.

Buehrle allowed six hits and walked two in his second spring training start. He threw 70 pitches against what could be the Cardinals‘ opening day lineup.

Matt Holliday hit his first home run of the spring and is batting .500 in exhibition play.

Cardinals starter Jake Westbrook tossed four shutout innings, allowing two hits.

St. Louis first baseman Lance Berkman returned to action for the first time since Sunday and doubled. He’d been out with a sore left knee.

TIGERS 9, METS 0

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. (AP) – New York Mets ace Johan Santana struggled for the first time this spring and was pulled in the third inningof a loss to Detroit.

Out of the majors last year while recovering from shoulder surgery, Santana had not allowed a run in his first two exhibition starts. But the two-time Cy Young gave up five runs – four earned – on four hits and two walks in 2 2-3 innings. He didn’t have any strikeouts.

Santana retired his first four batters, but seven of the next 10 hitters reached base against the left-hander.

Detroit starter Rick Porcello threw four scoreless innings, giving up four hits and striking out three.

ORIOLES 3, TWINS 1

FORT MYERS (AP) – Nick Blackburn had another impressive start, striking out three and allowing just one hit in four scoreless innings for a Minnesota Twins split squad in a loss to Baltimore.

The right-hander, who is coming off an inconsistent, injury-slowed 7-10 season, has given up four hits and no runs through seven innings this spring.

Orioles first baseman Chris Davis, who struggled late last year with a slight right labrum tear after coming over in a trade from the Rangers, went 2 for 4 with a double.

Baltimore’s Chris Tillman gave up four hits and a run in three innings.

PIRATES 3, PHILLIES 2

BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) – Cliff Lee allowed two home runs in 4 2-3 innings and was out pitched by Kevin Correia, who gave up one hit in four scoreless and led Pittsburgh to a win over Philadelphia.

Starling Marte took Lee deep in the first and later singled against the former Cy Young winner. Lee allowed three runs on five hits and a walk. He struck out five.

Correia, Pittsburgh’s opening-day starter last year, breezed through a Philadelphia lineup without most of its stars. Hunter Pence was one of only a few Phillies regulars in the lineup, and he struck out twice in three at-bats.

YANKEES 4, NATIONALS 3, 10 INNINGS

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) – Gio Gonzalez pitched into the fourth inning and allowed one run for Washington in a loss to the New York Yankees on Friday.

Gonzalez gave up two hits and three walk in 3 1-3 innings. He had six strikeouts. The Nationals’ new starter called the outing ”a good stepping stone.”

Alex Rodriguez hit a two-run homer for the Yankees. CC Sabathia was touched for three runs and six hits over three innings. Phil Hughes gave up three hits in four scoreless innings.

The Yankees announced Andy Pettitte has come out of retirement, signing a minor league contract with the team.

Washington manager Davey Johnson said right-hander Chien-Ming Wang, who strained his left hamstring fielding a grounder Thursday, will be out a couple weeks.

BLUE JAYS 5, RAYS 0

DUNEDIN, FLA. (AP) – Ricky Romero pitched four hitless innings and Toronto beat Tampa Bay.

Jeff Niemann, in the three-way scramble for one of the last two spots in Tampa Bay’s rotation, gave up four runs in 3 1-3 innings. Niemann had allowed just two hits and no runs over five innings in two previous starts, but he gave up eight hits this time, including a pair of RBI singles to J.P. Arencibia.

Romero struck out four. Travis Snider hit his fourth spring home run, off Jhonny Nunez in the sixth inning.

03/14/2012

by Joe Wilhelm Jr., Staff Writer

Based on his experiences with three high-profile sports franchises — the New York Giants, New York Jets and St. Louis Cardinals — new Jacksonville Jaguars President Mark Lamping sees similar opportunities in Jacksonville.

Lamping began his career with the Jaguars last week evaluating staff and facilities, joining a leadership team that includes general manager Gene Smith and head coach Mike Mularkey.

“My fundamental role is to do everything we can to make Gene Smith and Coach Mularkey’s job easier,” said Lamping in an interview Tuesday.

“From a functional standpoint, I am basically responsible for all the business aspects of the Jaguars,” he said.

Though Lamping said he was impressed with the Jaguars staff, daily evaluations will continue.

“I think evaluations happen every day, whether you are the first year in the organization or 10th or 20th. I’ve been very pleased with the staff that we’ve found here,” he said.

“Does that mean there won’t be some tweaking? Obviously, every organization evolves. Evolution happens quicker when there is an ownership change dropped in the middle of the organization. First we need to determine where we want to end up and everyone is given the resources and the ability to make decisions to get there,” he said.

A veteran of more than 20 years as an executive in professional sports, Lamping became the Jaguars’ first president in 15 years.

He was named president of the Jaguars on Feb. 13 and his first day on the job was Feb. 27.

Lamping’s professional career includes serving as a marketing executive with Anheuser-Busch, commissioner of the Continental Basketball Association, 14 seasons as president of the St. Louis Cardinals and the past four years as CEO of New Meadowlands Stadium Co., the joint venture formed between New York Giants and the New York Jets to develop and operate the new $1.6 billion stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

Lamping also understands that he is coming into a different situation than he has experienced during the last few stops on his career path.

St. Louis and New York offer larger fan bases, but they also have their challenges.

“I tend to look at what we have and not at what we don’t have. We have one professional team that does business in North Florida and Southern Georgia,” he said.

“I just came from New York, where there were 10 major league teams, so there is not a lot of clutter (here). There are a huge number of football fans in Northern Florida and Southern Georgia and they are very knowledgeable fans.”

He made the comparison between his hometown of St. Louis and Jacksonville.

“They are similar in a lot of ways. One is a little bit of the attitude. In St. Louis, some of the time we were our own worst enemy. We were very protective of the things that were St. Louis,” said Lamping.

“The other side of the coin is that we were always envious of Chicago and when you go through that, sometimes you don’t spend as much time focusing on those things that are really unique, special and unique about where you are.”

He said Jacksonville is one of the most “geographically desirable places to live in the country.”

“If you live here, you probably take it for granted a little bit,” said Lamping.

Lamping explained that the comparison relates to the Jaguars in that the team was a source of pride for the city when it was first announced and when it would contend in the playoffs.

“Think about the pride Jacksonville had when the team first came here. It was like ‘we shocked the world.’ You all had this great success,” said Lamping.

“Then you go through this tough economic time and it’s hard to remember when it was really good. I don’t see any reason why Jacksonville can’t rediscover its swagger a little bit. There are a lot of wonderful things that have happened here, that are happening here today and will continue to happen in the future,” he said.

jwilhelm@baileypub.com

356-2466

I have been pretty lucky as a St. Louis Cardinals fan. Since I was born in 1965 the team has made 14 trips to the postseason, won eight National League pennants and won four World Series titles. These are the top five Cardinals World Series moments in my lifetime.

Bob Gibson Dominates the Red Sox, 1967 – Gibson missed time in the regular season after being struck in the leg by a line drive off the bat of Pirates great Roberto Clemente. The Cardinals still had enough to win the National League, and Gibson rejoined the team in September in time to tune up for the World Series. In a dominant World Series pitching performance, Gibson pitched complete game victories in Games 1, 4 and 7. The Hall of Fame pitcher allowed just three runs in 27 innings pitched and struck out 26 against only five walks. Even facing a lineup that featured AL Triple Crown winner Carl Yastrzemski, Gibson posted a miniscule WHIP of 0.704. The Red Sox never had a chance.

Willie McGee Beats the Brewers, 1982 – Facing the powerful Milwaukee Brewers in Game 3 of the 1982 World Series, McGee turned in one of the best Fall Classic efforts of all time. That McGee was a rookie at the time made it all the more special. After hitting just four home runs during the regular season, McGee connected for two homers, a three-run shot to give the Cards the lead in the 5^th inning and a solo shot in the 7^th. McGee then topped that by making a leaping catch in the 9^th inning to take a home run away from the Brewers Gorman Thomas. The Cardinals went on to win in seven games to bring home the city’s first title in 15 years.

Anthony Reyes Shuts Down the Tigers, 2006 – The title drought was 24 years and counting when the Cardinals beat the Mets in a classic NLCS to capture the 2006 NL pennant. Their foe in the World Series would be the Tigers, a team with a tough starting rotation led by Rookie of the Year Justin Verlander. Having wrapped up their AL pennant early, the Tigers had plenty of rest before Game 1. But St. Louis rookie Anthony Reyes pitched the game of his life, out-pitching Verlander and allowing only two runs on two hits over eight innings. Reyes set Detroit down in order in the 2^nd, 3^rd, 4^th, 5^th and 6^th innings. The lowly 83-win Cardinals had knocked the wind out of the Tigers. St. Louis went on to win the series in five games.

AP Has a Game for the Ages, 2011 – Now bittersweet because it has turned out to be the last big game Albert Pujols will have for the Cardinals, Game 3 of the 2011 World Series was the game #5 turned Rangers Ballpark in Arlington into his own playground. By the time the game was over Pujols had five hits and six RBIs and had joined Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson as the only players ever to hit three home runs in a World Series game. Pujols had just six hits in the series, but he made five of them count in an unforgettable performance.

David Freese Stuns the Rangers, 2011 – Game 6 of the 2011 World Series is the best game I have ever seen. David Freese made it possible with a two-out, two-strike triple to tie the game in the 9^th inning and followed that with a city-rattling home run in the 11^th to win the game and set up a Game 7 for the following night. The Cards won 6-2 the next night to win the team’s 11^th World Series title, but it’s Game 6 that will live forever in Cardinals lore.

Statistics, records and game transcripts found at http://www.baseball-reference.com/.

A native of St. Louis, Brad Boeker has rooted for the Cardinals for over 40 years.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

FORT MYERS, Fla. – David Freese lived every kid’s dream last October, carrying his hometown St. Louis Cardinals to the World Series title with clutch hit after clutch hit.

The third baseman, who went to high school just outside St. Louis, was named the MVP of the NLCS and the World Series. He hit five home runs and drove in 21 runs in the postseason to outshine even megastars like teammate Albert Pujols and the Rangers’ Josh Hamilton.

Across the country in Fort Myers, Fla., Joe Mauer was watching it all unfold and couldn’t help but be a little jealous. The St. Paul golden boy was drafted No. 1 overall by the Minnesota Twins back in 2001, and has been thinking about nothing else but leading the team he grew up cheering for to the top of the baseball world.

“I think it’s everybody’s ultimate goal to win a World Series,” Mauer said, “but that’s got to be really cool for him to do that.”

There’s no place like home when your team is winning, as Freese discovered. And no place to hide when things start falling apart, like they did for Mauer and the Twins last season.

Freese spent the winter being honored for his incredible fall, making appearances on David Letterman, getting standing ovations at college football games and seeing the stars in the eyes of kids on a visit to his old high school.

“Achieving something at home is great because I’m a St. Louis Cardinal,” Freese said. “I think that’s what it’s all about. Reaching an achievement is special anywhere, regardless, but to be a kid from St. Louis, sure I think it hits home more. I’ve been around this team all my life.”

But the 28-year-old Freese is about to find out about the other side of being the hometown boy who makes good – the pressure, scrutiny and demands on your time can be suffocating. And the realization that fan support is not unconditional can carry an extra sting.

Pete Rose thrived in Cincinnati. San Francisco insulated Barry Bonds from his asterisk-alleging critics and Cal Ripken Jr. became an icon in Baltimore.

Ken Griffey Jr. had a much more difficult time in his return to Cincinnati years ago and Mauer has seen both sides of the coin in Minnesota, beloved in his first six seasons after winning three batting titles and an AL MVP, then turned on last year when injuries kept him out of the lineup and the Twins sunk to the bottom of the AL Central.

This season, left-hander C.J. Wilson is returning to his Southern California roots with the Los Angeles Angels, Prince Fielder will be playing in the city where his father slugged homers for the Tigers and Freese will be relied upon to keep the Cardinals in contention after Pujols left in free agency.

“I know I grew up around Tiger Stadium and some of the fans saw me or whatever,” Fielder said, “but I didn’t think they remembered me that much. Seeing that they do, it’s pretty awesome. And I’m glad I’m a part of it.”

That can be a good and a bad thing. It seems like everyone in Minnesota knows someone who knows someone who went to high school with Mauer or played against him in a prep tournament.

“I think you get pulled in more directions with your family and friends there,” Mauer said. “But it’s definitely a lot more reward than not. It’s all I’ve ever known.”

That’s why Wilson, who was born in Newport Beach, Calif., has decided to live “outside the bubble” now that he’s moved from the Rangers back home to the Angels.

“It’s going to be difficult to emphasize with all of my friends and family that it’s not the offseason anymore,” Wilson said. “They have to leave and leave me alone so I can still work, because my job is to pitch.”

His new teammate, first baseman Mark Trumbo, got a taste of it when he was called up last season. And he liked it.

“For me, to be able to experience that and know that my parents are able to come every night or at least as much as they can is something I wouldn’t trade for anything,” said Trumbo, who was raised in the shadows of the Angels’ ballpark in Anaheim.

Family wasn’t so much the issue for Griffey when he came to Cincy in a trade from Seattle in 2000 as was an adoring fan base and inquisitive media eager to cover one of their own. (next page »)