Cards take 2-1 lead

St. Louis' Chris Carpenter whitewashed the Tigers, 5-0.
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Chris Carpenter was well on his way to a World Series win when, all of sudden, people swarmed the mound to examine his hand.
No smudge, no scuffs. Just a cramp, and it wasn't about to blemish his outing.
Carpenter looked every bit a Cards' ace as he threw the Detroit Tigers a curve, pitching St. Louis to a 5-0 victory Tuesday night for a 2-1 Series edge.
Carpenter used big breaking balls to spin three-hit ball for eight innings. And with Jim Edmonds hitting a key double and St. Louis taking advantage of a poor throw, the Cardinals returned their focus squarely to the field.
Gone were any reminders of the squabbling Kenny Rogers caused with his smudged left hand in Game 2.
Oh, Rogers heard plenty from the sellout crowd at Busch Stadium during pregame introductions, as chants of "Cheat-er!" echoed throughout the ballpark. But that was about the only noise the Tigers caused in this game.
Looking fierce with his three-day beard, Carpenter showed why he won the NL Cy Young Award last year and is a top contender this season. He struck out six, walked none and kept the Tigers' trio of Placido Polanco, Ivan Rodriguez and Curtis Granderson hitless in the Series.
Only problem
Carpenter's lone problem came in the seventh inning. As Polanco led off by lining out to good friend Albert Pujols, Carpenter hopped off the mound and looked at his hand.
Cardinals manager Tony La Russa, a trainer and the entire St. Louis infield converged on the mound, peering at Carpenter's bare right hand. Plate umpire Wally Bell also went out to check as reliever Josh Kinney began warming up in a hurry.
All in all, it certainly was a lot more attention than Rogers attracted on the field after a yellowish-brown mark was spotted on his hand -- he said it was a mix of dirt, spit and resin, while others claimed it was illegal pine tar.
A moment later, Carpenter was deemed to be OK. He proved it, too, by continuing to set down the Tigers to constant cheers. He drew his biggest roar when he got a standing ovation as he came to bat in the eighth.
Braden Looper took over in the ninth and finished the combined three-hitter.
Game 4 will be Wednesday night, provided a forecast of steady rain holds off. If it does, NL championship series MVP Jeff Suppan will start against Jeremy Bonderman.
Toothless Tigers
The Tigers had homered in all 10 postseason games before Carpenter stopped them. And a Detroit team that averaged 51/2 runs per game throughout the AL playoffs has scored a total of five in the World Series.
It was somewhat of a surprise, too. Carpenter gave up a season-high seven runs at Detroit in June, and the Tigers' starting lineup was hitting .356 against him.
Carpenter allowed only one runner past first base. Brandon Inge singled and made it to third in the third on a two-out wild pitch, then catcher Yadier Molina blocked a curve that bounced to keep a run from scoring. Granderson grounded out to end the inning.
Edmonds hit a two-run double in the fourth. A throwing error by Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya and a wild pitch by Zach Miner gave St. Louis its other runs.
Working on 13 days' rest, Tigers lefty Nate Robertson opened with three hitless innings. That's about normal for the Cardinals -- they were a weak 23-34 against left-handed starters this season.
Edmonds delivered the big hit the Cardinals missed the last time they held the World Series under the Arch -- in 2004, St. Louis scored a total of one run in two losses to Boston.
DETROITST. LOUIS
abrhbiabrhbi
Grndsn cf4000Eckstin ss4120
Monroe lf4000PrWlsn lf3110
Planco 2b3000Pujols 1b4110
MOrdz rf3000Rolen 3b4110
CGillen ss3000Blliard 2b4000
IRdrgz c3000Edmnd cf2012
Casey 1b3020YMolna c3010
Inge 3b3010Tguchi rf3100
Rodney p0000Crpnter p3000
Miner p0000Looper p0000
Rbrtsn p0000
AGmez ph1000
Ldzma p0000
Zmaya p0000
Grilli p0000
NPerez 3b0000
Infante ph1000
Totals28030Totals30572
Detroit000000000--0
St. Louis00020021x--5
E--Zumaya (1). DP--Detroit 1, St. Louis 1. LOB--Detroit 2, St. Louis 11. 2B--Pujols (1), Edmonds (2), YMolina (1). S--Robertson, Carpenter.
IPHRERBBSO
Detroit
Robertson L,0-1552233
Ledezma1-310001
Zumaya102021
Grilli2-300010
Rodney1-311120
Miner2-300000
St. Louis
Carpenter W,1-0830006
Looper100000
HBP--by Miner (Pujols). WP--Miner, Carpenter. Umpires--Home, Wally Bell; First, Mike Winters; Second, John Hirschbeck; Third, Tim McClelland; Left, Randy Marsh; Right, Alfonso Marquez. T--3:03. A--46,513.
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.