ST. LOUIS — The St. Louis Cardinals put some more distance between themselves and their top rival in the NL Central, the Houston Astros.
So Taguchi’s bases-loaded single in the 11th inning off Mike Gallo gave the Cardinals a 4-3 victory Wednesday, spoiling Houston’s first game since re-signing Roger Clemens. The Cardinals took two of three from the Astros, who beat them in the NLCS last year en route to their first World Series.
“There’s definitely a little more of that extra oomph, or whatever you want to call it,” Cards shortshop David Eckstein said. “Hopefully, we get up for every game, but it’s definitely nice to be able to go out there and take two out of three from them.”
The Astros rebounded from a 15-30 start to win the NL wild card last year. They’re in third place in the Central at 27-27, 7 1/2 games back of the Cardinals, after wrapping up a 3-7 trip.
“It’s been a tough, tough road trip,” manager Phil Garner said. “I’m glad to get it over and get home for a while.”
Eckstein had two hits, scored twice and avoided injury when he was hit on the wrist in the 11th. Albert Pujols drove in his major league-leading 65th run for the Cardinals.
Taguchi, the Cardinals’ fourth outfielder, is 6-for-10 with eight RBIs with the bases loaded this season and 16-for-30 for his career. In his two previous at-bats after entering as a pinch hitter in the seventh, he said he chased too many pitches out of the zone.
“That’s a great situation,” Taguchi said. “The pitcher has to pitch a strike, so I was just waiting middle, and the ball comes middle.”
Gallo took two losses on the trip.
“This game’s streaky,” Gallo said. “Eventually, there’s only one way to go, and that’s up.”
Braden Looper (3-0) struck out one in a perfect 11th for the Cardinals, who are an NL-best 20-8 at the new Busch Stadium and have not lost a series there.
Orlando Palmeiro had two hits and scored twice for the Astros, who finished a dismal 11-19 May and are 8-19 on the road.
Yadier Molina doubled off Gallo (1-2) with one out in the 11th, the Cardinals’ first hit since the fifth. Molina remained at second on Aaron Miles’ infield hit, gloved by sprawling third baseman Morgan Ensberg. Gallo hit Eckstein in the wrist on an 0-2 pitch to load the bases and Taguchi singled up the middle on a 1-0 count.
“That was a fine piece of hitting,” manager Tony La Russa said. “He didn’t try to do too much, just stroked it.”
CARDS EYE DL FOR EDMONDS: Jim Edmonds missed his fifth straight start Wednesday with an abdominal injury; La Russa expects the outfielder to be out for a while.
A specialist diagnosed Edmonds’ injury as a mild to moderate abdominal wall strain, and the team said he would be re-evaluated on Friday. Spokesman Brian Bartow said Edmonds was day to day and that the team would wait until Friday, after a day off today, to consider placing him on the 15-day disabled list.
Team doctors had struggled to pin down a diagnosis.
If Edmonds goes on the disabled list, La Russa said a combination of So Taguchi, Larry Bigbie and Juan Encarnacion, who made his first start of the season in center field on Wednesday, could fill in defensively.
TIES TO GREATNESS: A great-nephew of Mickey Mantle took the first step in his professional baseball career Wednesday by signing with the St. Louis Cardinals.
Blake King, a right-handed pitcher, led all junior college pitchers in strikeouts as a freshman.
King, 19, said he planned to work on locating pitches and developing a change-up after the Cardinals assign him to their rookie ball affiliate in either State College, Pa., or Johnson City, Tenn.
King’s grandfather, Roy Mantle, was a brother of New York Yankees star Mickey Mantle.
The Cardinals drafted King in the 44th round of the 50-round 2005 draft last June. This spring at Eastern Oklahoma State College in Wilburton, King went 9-3 with a 1.05 earned-run average. His 123 strikeouts led the National Junior College Athletic Association, according to the college.