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Albert Pujols appears to have found his rhythm at the plate.
The All-Star first baseman hopes to continue his hot streak Saturday when the St. Louis Cardinals play the third game of their four-game set against the San Francisco Giants.
Pujols has been on a torrid pace over the last three games, hitting 6-for-12 with three homers and seven RBIs. His recent power surge came after he endured the longest season-opening homer drought of his career, while going 8-for-25 (.320) with one RBI.
Pujols went 2-for-5 on Friday with a three-run shot and an RBI double as the Cardinals (8-3) won 8-2 at San Francisco (4-7), a night after a 5-1 series-opening loss.
Pujols is hitting .409 (18-for-44) with three homers -- all at AT&T Park -- and 13 RBIs in his last 11 games against the Giants.
"There's only a few hitters like him in the game," Cardinals rookie left fielder Brian Barton said. "His approach to the game is remarkable. I love watching him prepare, and I try to emulate some of what he does."
Barton and Skip Schumaker may have helped spur Pujols' season-high RBI total on Friday by combining to go 5-for-10 with Schumaker scoring four times, while hitting in front of the 2005 NL MVP.
"You get guys on base, as tough as (Pujols) is, it's hard to give him four balls," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "You have to credit Skip and Brian."
Schumaker has shaken off a slow start to the season by going 9-for-18 with two doubles, a triple and seven runs over the last four games. The right fielder is 9-for-15 (.600) with a homer and seven runs in his last five games against the Giants.
The Cardinals' Todd Wellemeyer (1-0, 2.25 ERA) is looking for another strong start, but hopes his teammates can continue to generate runs after they produced none to help him in his last outing.
The right-hander allowed two runs and five hits with seven strikeouts in seven innings Monday as St. Louis lost 5-3 at Houston. That performance came after he limited reigning NL champion Colorado to one run and four hits while fanning six in five innings of an 8-3 victory on April 2.
Wellemeyer won his only career start against San Francisco on July 8, giving up two hits in five innings of a 7-0 victory.
The Giants send Matt Cain (0-1, 3.60) to the mound for his first start against St. Louis.
The right-hander has been erratic through two starts this season. He allowed five runs and seven hits, including a homer, with five walks and as many strikeouts in 4 1-3 innings of an 8-4 loss to San Diego on Monday. That was in stark contrast to his season debut on April 1 when he allowed three hits with five strikeouts in 5 2-3 innings of San Francisco's 3-2 loss at Los Angeles.
Bengie Molina, who had the night off Friday, is 7-for-17 with two homers and six RBIs over the last four games. The catcher leads the Giants with three homers and eight RBIs.
Despite his strong showing, Molina is still only hitting .227 (5-for-22) against the Cards.
The All-Star first baseman hopes to continue his hot streak Saturday when the St. Louis Cardinals play the third game of their four-game set against the San Francisco Giants.
Pujols has been on a torrid pace over the last three games, hitting 6-for-12 with three homers and seven RBIs. His recent power surge came after he endured the longest season-opening homer drought of his career, while going 8-for-25 (.320) with one RBI.
Pujols went 2-for-5 on Friday with a three-run shot and an RBI double as the Cardinals (8-3) won 8-2 at San Francisco (4-7), a night after a 5-1 series-opening loss.
Pujols is hitting .409 (18-for-44) with three homers -- all at AT&T Park -- and 13 RBIs in his last 11 games against the Giants.
"There's only a few hitters like him in the game," Cardinals rookie left fielder Brian Barton said. "His approach to the game is remarkable. I love watching him prepare, and I try to emulate some of what he does."
Barton and Skip Schumaker may have helped spur Pujols' season-high RBI total on Friday by combining to go 5-for-10 with Schumaker scoring four times, while hitting in front of the 2005 NL MVP.
"You get guys on base, as tough as (Pujols) is, it's hard to give him four balls," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "You have to credit Skip and Brian."
Schumaker has shaken off a slow start to the season by going 9-for-18 with two doubles, a triple and seven runs over the last four games. The right fielder is 9-for-15 (.600) with a homer and seven runs in his last five games against the Giants.
The Cardinals' Todd Wellemeyer (1-0, 2.25 ERA) is looking for another strong start, but hopes his teammates can continue to generate runs after they produced none to help him in his last outing.
The right-hander allowed two runs and five hits with seven strikeouts in seven innings Monday as St. Louis lost 5-3 at Houston. That performance came after he limited reigning NL champion Colorado to one run and four hits while fanning six in five innings of an 8-3 victory on April 2.
Wellemeyer won his only career start against San Francisco on July 8, giving up two hits in five innings of a 7-0 victory.
The Giants send Matt Cain (0-1, 3.60) to the mound for his first start against St. Louis.
The right-hander has been erratic through two starts this season. He allowed five runs and seven hits, including a homer, with five walks and as many strikeouts in 4 1-3 innings of an 8-4 loss to San Diego on Monday. That was in stark contrast to his season debut on April 1 when he allowed three hits with five strikeouts in 5 2-3 innings of San Francisco's 3-2 loss at Los Angeles.
Bengie Molina, who had the night off Friday, is 7-for-17 with two homers and six RBIs over the last four games. The catcher leads the Giants with three homers and eight RBIs.
Despite his strong showing, Molina is still only hitting .227 (5-for-22) against the Cards.
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