FIRST PLACE CARDS ON FIRE

Chris Carpenter got mad at the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday night. Then he got ahead of them. Because of a blown save, he ended up even. But thanks to the biggest game of center fielder Colby Rasmus’ emerging career, the Cardinals responded to a squandered eighth-inning lead with a ninth-inning detonation against well-worn Diamondbacks reliever Chad Qualls and escaped Chase Field with a 9-4 victory before a sparse crowd of 19,165. Carpenter controlled the game for seven solid innings that included 10 strikeouts. Rasmus enjoyed the first multiple-home run game of his career by reaching Diamondbacks starter Edwin Jackson for a two-run blast in the first inning then doing the same to Qualls in the ninth. In between, Rasmus smoked a sixth-inning triple that led to another run and a 4-2 lead. Still 23, Rasmus proved the Cardinals’ enforcer on a night when bad blood literally ran early. His launch touched off a five-run assault against Qualls and his successor, Bobby Howry. Second baseman Skip Schumaker completed the rally with a three-run home run for his first RBI in 58 at-bats. The late show of force proved fitting for a team that took exception to Jackson’ s early lack of command. After hitting right fielder Ryan Ludwick during a three-run first inning, Jackson found Carpenter’s left wrist in the second with a high, inside fastball on an 0-2 count. "I hit .100. It’s not like I can hit. Throw the ball down and away. Throw a slider, whatever it is," Carpenter said. "It’s different if you’re Carlos Zambrano, Adam Wainwright, Dan Haren, guys that can hit. You throw 95 miles per hour, chucking balls up high, never mind you can’t control it. Come on. He’s missing by three feet. It’s not right." Brandishing a severely swollen left forearm and a bad disposition after a heated exchange with Jackson, Carpenter protected an early 3-0 advantage long enough and well enough to leave with a 4-2 lead. The bullpen’s first blown save of the season denied Carpenter the win before Jason Motte (1-1) put down an eighth-inning rally to gain the decision. Shortstop Brendan Ryan’s double jacked the Cardinals’ lead to 6-4 before Schumaker constructed a blowout with a three-run home run. The Cardinals derived six runs from three home runs. (They lead the National League with 23 home runs in 15 games.) Catcher Yadier Molina helped the rally with his third hit. Rasmus put the Cardinals ahead three runs with a two-run, two-out home run off Jackson in the first inning. Rasmus, who finished with three hits and 11 total bases, then bumped the lead to 4-2 in the sixth when he tripled to the deepest part of Chase Field before scoring on Jackson’s pitch to the screen. Once a relative outcast within his own clubhouse, Rasmus now finds greater acceptance. "He’s matured a lot," Ludwick said. "He’s a good player, a good teammate." Rasmus has followed an 0-for-15 week with a 7-for16 breakout, including three home runs and seven RBI, in his last four games. His overall average has risen from .179 to .273 in the span. "My swing wasn’t feeling good. It felt good beginning in Cincinnati. Then it started going away on me," Rasmus said. "I’ve been working on some things, working on them, working on them, then when I got in the box I haven’t been able to put it together. Tonight, I felt like my swing was where I wanted it to be." The same couldn’t be said about the opposing starter’s command. Down two strikes to Jackson in his first plate appearance, Carpenter was hit just above the left wrist with a riding fastball. He reacted strongly as he moved to first base, yelling at Jackson, who responded in kind. The incident occurred only moments after Jackson drilled the game’s second hitter, right fielder Ludwick, during the Cardinals’ three-run first inning. The back-and-forth with Carpenter escalated when the Cardinals starter became the front end of an inning-ending double play. Rather than slide, Carpenter bore in on the second base bag, drawing a comment from Diamondbacks second baseman Kelly Johnson. When Carpenter snapped back at Johnson, the Diamondbacks infield began to circle around him, prompting first baseman Albert Pujols to lead a charge from the first-base dugout. Pujols first confronted catcher Chris Snyder as Jackson and Carpenter resumed their shouting match. At one point Cardinals third-base coach Jose Oquendo restrained Jackson. Both bullpens emptied. Though several close-quarter "conversations" broke out, the incident never fully escalated. Crew chief Gary Cedarstrom issued a warning to both teams, guaranteeing ejections for any retaliation. "That was my fault. It was an unprofessional move. I shouldn’t have done it," Carpenter said of his abrupt move to the bag. However, he remained irked by Jackson’s lack of command. "If a ball gets away from me, it’s a ball I’m trying to throw inside and it hits a guy. It’s not a ball I’m trying to throw down and away that I miss by four feet and smash a guy in the hand. It doesn’t happen," Carpenter said. "He wasn’t throwing at him. I know that," manager Tony La Russa said. "But the fact is he was throwing up. That’s dangerous. If you can’t control it, then pitch down." Carpenter wouldn’t repeat what he yelled at Jackson but the message drew a strong response. "It didn’t hurt at all. I was so (bleeped) off. I was trying to control my emotions," he said. "Any time you throw a ball up, especially to a pitcher, it’ s unacceptable." Carpenter has no problem pitching mad. Indeed, he often wears his emotion to the mound. This time it may have worked against him as the Diamondbacks rallied for a two-run third inning. Following up last week’s 10-strikeout performance against the New York Mets, Carpenter struck out the side in the first and third innings and needed only six innings to reach double-digit strikeouts for a second straight game. The Diamondbacks reached Carpenter for two runs between his three strikeouts in the third inning. Snyder’s leadoff single preceded consecutive two-out RBI doubles by third baseman Tony Abreu and Drew. Carpenter disposed of Jackson during the rally by buckling him with a curveball. "I was struggling to control my emotions for a few innings," Carpenter said. The Cardinals did little damage against Jackson after the first inning. Rasmus’ triple to the deepest part of the park offered Molina the Cardinals’ only plate appearance with a runner in scoring position after the first inning. However, the opportunity passed when Jackson spiked a breaking pitch to give Rasmus the plate. Pujols helped Carpenter with sprawling backhand stops in the sixth and seventh innings. Carpenter exited the seventh inning having squeezed 12 outs from his last 11 hitters faced. Cole Gillespie’s pinch double in his first major-league at-bat came on Carpenter’s 111th and final pitch, handing over a 4-2 lead to lefthander Trever Miller. Miller inherited a stretch of two lefthanded bats and switch-hitter Abreu. Johnson quickly made a 4-3 game with a double to right field. He advanced to third on Abreu’s smash to second base and scored to tie the game when Miller’s slider skipped past Molina for what was ruled a wild pitch. The blown save made the Cardinals the National League’s last bullpen to fumble a late-inning lead. By recovering, they improved to 7-0 when leading after seven innings. "The more games we play, the better we play," Molina said. (STLToday.com)