PIRATES Luis Pujols stays hot, carries Cardinals

He extended his hitting streak to 28 games in St. Louis' 4-3 win.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa isn't ready to start Albert Pujols' Most Valuable Player campaign just yet. A couple of weeks from now, it might not be necessary for him to get involved.
With Pujols first in the NL batting race (.368) and second in home runs (34) and RBIs (108), Pujols is mounting a far better argument than his manager or a public relations firm could make.
Pujols didn't homer or drive in a run for the first time in five games Thursday, yet got the Cardinals' offense going again with a first-inning single that led to their first run and a 4-3 victory in Pittsburgh.
Starting pitcher Garrett Stephenson (7-11) and a creative offense that got only one extra-base hit -- Tino Martinez's homer -- did the rest as the Cardinals moved into a first-place tie in the NL Central.
St. Louis won three times in the four-game series and has won six of eight overall to tie the Astros, who lost 7-1 to the Cubs. Chicago closed to within a half-game of the lead in the majors' closest division race.
Pujols also leads the NL in hits (167), multi-hit games (48), total bases (314), extra-base hits (76) and is second in runs (107). He is tied with the Dodgers' Shawn Green for the lead in doubles (42).
Can tie club mark
Pujols also has the longest hitting streak in the majors this season, a 28-game run he extended with his single. It's the Cardinals' longest streak since Ken Boyer hit in 29 in a row in 1959.
He'll get no argument from the Pirates, who probably are glad they play the Cardinals just three more times. They're hitting .298 against St. Louis, yet are only 6-8 against them largely because of Pujols' play. He's hitting .443 with four homers and 16 RBIs against Pittsburgh.
The Cardinals' bullpen was shaky again Thursday after Stephenson held the Pirates to one run and five hits over eighth innings, with Jason Isringhausen allowing Jose Hernandez's two-run double in the ninth. But Isringhausen recovered to get Abraham Nunez on a ground out to end the game with the potential tying run on second.
"We had to work hard to get the three [wins] here," La Russa said. "This was work ball, not playing ball."
Pitcher on a streak
Stephenson (7-11) allowed just one run for the third time in four starts. He beat the Expos 2-1 with a complete game July 29 and the Braves 3-1 Saturday, when he lasted seven innings.
Good thing for the Cardinals, too, because he's giving them a big lift with staff ace Matt Morris (8-6) out. Morris hasn't pitched since July 22 because of a broken bone in his right hand, but threw in the bullpen Thursday and could come off the 15-day disabled list to start this weekend in Philadelphia.
Scott Rolen's single drove in Pujols to give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead in the first against Jeff D'Amico (7-12), who yielded 10 hits and four runs in six innings.
Bo Hart had a run-scoring single in the second and Stephenson drove in his second run of the season with a two-out single in the fourth. Martinez homered for the second time in three games in the sixth.