N.L. CENTRAL Pirates lose to Cards

Jim Edmonds homered twice, including the game-winner.
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- For at least one game, Jim Edmonds had his home run stroke back.
Edmonds hit his 31st and 32nd homers Thursday night, with his three-run shot in the ninth inning giving the St. Louis Cardinals a 6-3 victory over Pittsburgh.
He's homered only three times since July 18.
"A lot of that has to do with pitches you get to hit," manager Tony La Russa said. "But he's really been working hard, and as usual hard work pays off."
Edmonds hit the winning homer off Joe Beimel two pitches after third baseman Jose Hernandez dropped a foul pop near the stands.
"That's unbelievable," Edmonds said. "I thought I was out. I got lucky, I got another pitch to hit."
Rally
So Taguchi singled off Mike Lincoln (1-4) and Kerry Robinson reached on an infield hit to start the bottom of the ninth. Beimel has allowed runs in each of his last four outings, giving up six earned runs in two-thirds of an inning.
"Jim's a great player, and great players make great things happen," Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon said. "We gave him an extra swing and he took advantage of it."
Miguel Cairo homered and Scott Rolen was 2-for-4 with an RBI double as the Cardinals took two of three from the Pirates. St. Louis won three of four at Pittsburgh last week.
The Pirates tied it in the eighth on a two-out, two-run triple by Abraham Nunez off Jason Simontacchi. Nunez fouled off several pitches before his drive to the gap in right-center.
Cal Eldred (7-4) escaped a jam in the top of the ninth. After allowing a leadoff triple to Tike Redman, Brian Giles took a called third strike, Matt Stairs fouled out and Craig Wilson flied out to the warning track.
"You're not supposed to put yourself in those jams, are you?" Eldred said. "I was forced to make some pitches."
Long outing
Cardinals starter Woody Williams threw 134 pitches in 94-degree heat, 10 more than he'd ever thrown before in 209 career starts. He allowed seven hits in 62/3 innings with six strikeouts and two walks.
He's 0-3 in his last four starts, and hurt himself against the Pirates by striking out three times and stranding four runners. Williams is one of the better hitting pitchers with a .228 average, including a homer and seven RBIs.