C.J. Wilson wasn't very good through the first two innings, but he escaped unscathed. Then he seemed to find his groove in the bottom of the third. That didn't bode very well for the Cardinals' hopes of getting on the board.

But get on the board they did, in the bottom of the fourth. Pitching in a scoreless tie, Wilson hit Albert Pujols with a 2-1 slider to lead off.

On the very next pitch, Wilson left a fastball over the middle of the plate, and Matt Holliday drove it down the line the other way for a double. Pujols limped around the bases and had to stop at third instead of sprinting home, but he'd make it home before long.

Lance Berkman was up next, and in a 1-0 count, he slapped an outside cutter the other way, the ball falling just fair, just beyond first base. It went for a two-run single, and the Cardinals found themselves armed with a 2-0 lead.

That's all the damage they'd do. David Freese sent a long fly to straightaway center that sounded good off the bat, but came up short of the wall. There were also two other, far more boring outs. But a 2-0 lead is a 2-0 lead, and Chris Carpenter has looked a lot better in the last two innings than he did in the first two. The Cardinals are in a good place.