NL CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES Rockin' and Rolen: Cards take 2-0 lead

Scott Rolen hit a pair of homers as St. Louis posted a 6-4 victory over the Astros.
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Scott Rolen, Albert Pujols and the rest of the St. Louis Cardinals did exactly what they expected. Facing a pair of unheralded Houston pitchers, they won both times.
Now, it's up to Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt to pull the Astros back into the NL championship series.
On a cold, wet, miserable night, no one in the sellout crowd at Busch Stadium left complaining Thursday. Not after Rolen hit two home runs, combining with Pujols for back-to-back shots in the eighth inning to lead the Cardinals to 6-4 victory over the Astros and a 2-0 lead in a series dominated by sluggers.
A winning night, and a memorable one, too. For the first time in their long, proud postseason history, the Cardinals connected for consecutive home runs.
"We open at home, you earn that advantage, it's nice to get the two," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "But, I mean, there's nobody whooping it up in that dugout or that clubhouse."
Bigger challenge
After winning games that converted outfielder Brandon Backe and journeyman Pete Munro started against them, the hard part lies ahead for St. Louis, beginning Saturday at Minute Maid Park.
Clemens, coming off an 18-4 season that made him a Cy Young Award candidate, starts Game 3 against Jeff Suppan. Then comes Oswalt, who led the league with 20 wins.
"Those guys have been our horses all year and we'll turn to them now and ask them to do what they've been doing all year, and that's win for us," Astros manager Phil Garner said.
The Astros will be glad to get back to the place where they've won 19 of their last 20 games. And the retractable roof guarantees good conditions, something St. Louis was missing.
The weather was awful all evening, with drizzle delaying the start for almost a half-hour and lasting through the final pitch. Temperatures fell through the 40s and a light wind made it feel even worse.
The hitters, however, didn't seem to mind.
All runs on homers
Larry Walker also went deep for St. Louis, which scored all of its runs on homers. Carlos Beltran hit his sixth home run of this postseason and Morgan Ensberg also connected in helping the wild card Astros take a 3-0 lead.
"The good thing is this isn't a two-game series," Garner said. "We're not where we want to be certainly, but we'll work this thing out."
With the score 4-all, Pujols led off the eighth with a home run and the slumping Rolen followed with another shot to left field.
Nursing a strained left calf, Rolen was 0-for-14 in this year's playoffs before an RBI single in Game 1.
"I don't know what my postseason numbers are, but tonight I contributed to help us win a ball game," the All-Star third baseman said.
Julian Tavarez got the victory in relief. Jason Isringhausen worked around two walks in the ninth, getting Ensberg on a long fly out to finish for his second save of the NLCS.
Astros' bullpen falters
Dan Miceli took the loss as the Astros' bullpen continued to falter. He took over to begin the eighth and gave up home runs to the first two batters he faced.
Rolen and Walker hit two-run homers that put St. Louis ahead 4-3 in the fifth. Rolen was the first batter Chad Harville faced after he relieved Munro.
Houston made it 4-all in the seventh when Lance Berkman doubled, stole third and scored when Ensberg grounded a single past the drawn-in infield.
The Cardinals were 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position before Walker delivered the big hit they needed. The slugger completed his cycle, albeit a day later -- he tripled, doubled and singled in a 10-7 win in the opener.
HOUSTONST. LOUIS
abrhbiabrhbi
Biggio lf5110Wmack 2b4110
DMiceli p0000LWalkr rf4112
CBeltrn cf2111Pujols 1b4231
Bgwell 1b3000Rolen 3b4223
Brkmn rf5121Edmnd cf4010
JKent 2b4010Rnteria ss4000
AEvrtt pr0000RSndrs lf4000
Ensbrg 3b5122Isrnghs p0000
JVzcno ss4020Mtheny c3010
Asmus c3010Morris p0000
Munro p1000MAndn ph0000
Hrvlle p0000Kline p0000
Brntlett ph1000Calero p0000
Wheelr p0000Cedeno ph1000
OPlmro lf1000Tvarez p0000
Tguchi lf0000
Totals344104Totals32696
Houston100110100--4
St. Louis00004002x--6
E--PMunro (1). DP--St. Louis 1. LOB--Houston 11, St. Louis 4. 2B--Berkman (1), JKent (1), Edmonds (2). HR--CBeltran (2), Ensberg (1), LWalker (1), Pujols (2), Rolen 2 (2). SB--Berkman (1), Womack (2). CS--Bagwell (1), Ensberg (1). S--Morris.
IPHRERBBSO
Houston
PMunro4 2-363314
Harville1-311101
Wheeler200002
DMiceli L,0-1122200
St. Louis
Morris563355
Kline020000
Calero221111
Tavarez W,1-0100000
Isringhausen S,2100020
Kline pitched to 2 batters in the 6th. WP--Morris 2. Balk--Morris. Umpires--Home, Eric Cooper; First, Gary Darling; Second, Mike Winters; Third, Angel Hernandez; Left, Ed Rapuano; Right, Tim Welke. T--3:02. A--52,347.