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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Rick Ankiel is making it difficult for St.
Louis manager Tony La Russa to leave him out of the postseason
rotation.
|  | | Rick Ankiel erased Dizzy Dean's Cardinals rookie mark for strikeouts. |
Ankiel pitched six strong innings, breaking Dizzy Dean's single-season Cardinals record for strikeouts by a rookie to lead St. Louis to a 3-0 win Wednesday night over the San Diego Padres.
"I think it will be very hard," said La Russa, responding to
deciding whether Ankiel starts in the NL playoffs. "The key is,
what's our best chance to win."
The NL Central champion Cardinals are one game behind Atlanta
and San Francisco in the race for the league's best record and
home-field advantage in the playoffs. Each team has four games
left.
Based on how Ankiel (11-7) has pitched in September, the
left-hander may well be one of the Cardinals postseason starters.
Ankiel is 3-0 in five September starts with an ERA of 1.65.
"It's not just his control, but he's pitching," La Russa said.
"He's changing speeds on his fastball, moving it around. He's
putting a little sink on it."
Darryl Kile is penciled in as the Cardinals' Game 1 starter, regardless of the opponent. With 16-game winner Garrett Stephenson
battling a tired arm, La Russa may well turn to the 21-year-old
Ankiel.
"We have questions about a starting pitcher, but we don't have any questions about (Ankiel)," said La Russa, who added he probably won't settle on the rotation until after Sunday's regular-season finale.
Ankiel said he's ready to fill whatever role La Russa deems
necessary.
"The best thing for me is to stay relaxed and low key," he said.
Ankiel made La Russa's decision even tougher as he gave up just
five hits and did not allow a runner to advance past second base in
his last regular-season start.
"I've been cutting down on my velocity and getting better
control," Ankiel said. "It's helped make me a better pitcher.
Ankiel struck out seven to raise his total to 193, surpassing
Dean's mark of 191 in 1932.
Dave Veres pitched the ninth for his 28th save.
The Cardinals beat San Diego for the 10th straight time,
including eight in a row this year. St. Louis has won 11 of 15
overall.
Mark McGwire, who has yet to play in the field since coming off
the disabled list on Sept. 8, pinch-hit for Ankiel in the seventh
and flied out.
Will Clark's RBI double in the fourth and a two-run single by Eric Davis in the fifth provided St. Louis with all the runs it
needed against the struggling Padres.
"The things we did tonight are what you have to do to win in
the playoffs," Davis said. "It's much harder to get big innings
in the playoffs, so you have to the little things like tonight."
San Diego was shut out for the second time in four games, in
which it has scored just two runs.
Brian Tollberg (4-5) allowed three runs -- one earned -- on five
hits in five innings.
"We've gone through as a dry of a run as I've seen," San Diego manager Bruce Bochy said. "But we've also run into some tough pitching."
Clark doubled down the right-field line to score Jim Edmonds,
who walked, for a 1-0 lead in the fourth.
A two-out single by Ankiel and an error by second baseman Damian
Jackson on Fernando Vina's grounder set up Davis' single.
Game notes
Ankiel is 2-0 against the Padres this season and has not
allowed a run in 11 innings. ... Ankiel is batting .250
(17-for-68). ... St. Louis has won eight of Ankiel's last nine
starts. ... San Diego dropped to 6-23 against NL division leaders.
... The Cardinals moved a season-high 28 games above .500 for the
third time this season. ... Padres LF Eric Owens, who left
Tuesday's game with a sprained left ankle, was back in the starting
lineup.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
St. Louis Clubhouse
San Diego Clubhouse
RECAPS
Oakland 9
Anaheim 7
Toronto 4
Baltimore 0
Cleveland 8
Minnesota 2
Tampa Bay 11
NY Yankees 1
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Detroit 0
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San Francisco 4
Los Angeles 0
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San Diego 0
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