Colby Rasmus Injury: Rasmus Pinch-Hits For Cardinals, Due Back Thursday Or Friday

Colby Rasmus pinch-hit for the St. Louis Cardinals Wednesday night after missing three consecutive games with abdominal pain, and in his post-game remarks manager Tony La Russa suggested Rasmus would have been available, in a closer game, for work as a defensive replacement. He's no guarantee to play Thursday's day-game against the Astros at home, but La Russa thinks he's likely to be back in the lineup by the team's interleague debut against the Kansas City Royals over the weekend; most of the more dangerous explanations for Rasmus's discomfort appear to have been ruled out by now. 

Rasmus, who worked a 3-2 count before grounding out in his ninth-inning appearance Wednesday, is hitting .305/.393/.461 for the Cardinals, with three triples to go with three home runs and 15 RBI. The Cardinals could use his bat and his glove, with both Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman hurting after Wednesday's game against the Astros, but Jon Jay's great work in Rasmus's stead has stabilized an outfield that has threatened, of late, to be in flux. 

Pete Kozma Walks, Doubles In Surprise St. Louis Cardinals Debut

On Monday it was still an open question as to whether Pete Kozma, the St. Louis Cardinals' 2007 first-rounder, would ever reach the Major Leagues. In AAA Memphis this season he'd hit just .220, with an OPS of just .568, and his 2010 in AA Springfield had been plagued by mediocre hitting and a swarm of errors at shortstop. He'd always been pushed too fast, though, so maybe it was no surprise at all when he was called up to the Major Leagues on Wednesday. It was more of a surprise when he doubled in a run down the third base line in his first at-bat and walked in his second. 

Brought in to replace 2005 first-rounder Tyler Greene at second base—who was himself replacing Lance Berkman in right field—Kozma showcased the long, finicky swing that has become his nemesis in the minor leagues. But he fought off seven pitches to draw a walk in his second plate appearance, and at this moment he's batting 1.000. It's hard to get a handle on Kozma's future, which is still fraught with uncertainty, but his present hasn't looked quite this good in some time. 

Matt Holliday Injury: Holliday Leaves Game With Tightness In Quad, Severity Uncertain

Matt Holliday was one of three St. Louis Cardinals starting outfielders—that's all of them—to finish Wednesday's victory against the Houston Astros with a not-especially-severe injury. Center fielder Colby Rasmus missed three games with abdominal pain before returning in a still-limited capacity as a pinch hitter; Lance Berkman left the game with wrist pain after making an outstanding catch in right. In between, Holliday left the game with what the team is calling tightness in his left quadriceps. His return is uncertain, but in his postgame comments Tony La Russa did not seem extremely concerned by the problem. 

Holliday was replaced initially by seldom-used backup first baseman Mark Hamilton, who went 0-1 and played an inning in the field before being replaced with Allen Craig, who had started the game at second base. (Tyler Greene, who would eventually replace Lance Berkman in right field, came into the game to play second.) When asked to explain the roster roulette La Russa suggested that the Cardinals' four-run fourth inning made him shift the order for defense, instead of offense. 

St. Louis Cardinals Score On Bud Norris, Top Astros Wednesday Night

The St. Louis Cardinals managed to get on the board against Houston Astros starter Bud Norris Wednesday night, scoring five runs against the hard-throwing starter, and Kyle Lohse pitched eight impeccable innings on the way to a 5-1 Cardinals win. Jon Jay drove in two runs and Yadier Molina had three hits to pace the Cardinals, who also got an RBI double from their 2007 first-round pick, Pete Kozma, who made his Major League debut in relief of Lance Berkman—by way of Tyler Greene, who ended up in right field. 

Berkman and Matt Holliday both left the game with injuries that aren't thought to be serious at this time; Holliday left early with a strained quad, while Berkman injured his wrist making a diving catch in right field. Tony La Russa's roster machinations ensured that the two of them were replaced, in one way or another, by nearly every player on the bench and in the lineup; Allen Craig made another start at second base before ending up in the outfield, while Tyler Greene, Craig's first infield replacement, moved after Kozma came in. Mark Hamilton, the Cardinals' little-used backup first baseman, saw a few innings in the outfield to complete the effect. 

Carlos Lee doubled, while Michael Bourn and Humberto Quintero each had two hits for the Astros, who fall to 15-28 on the season. 

Lance Berkman Injury: Removal From Wednesday's Game Deemed "Precautionary"

Not a lot was expected out of Lance Berkman in his return to the outfield—but unfortunately for the St. Louis Cardinals, he was determined to prove the skeptics wrong. Berkman made an outstanding play in right field, diving forward to catch a looper that nearly dropped in, and was rewarded for his effort by twisting his wrist upon contact with the ground. Derrick Goold of the Post-Dispatch reported midgame that the exit—which didn't happen immediately—was precautionary. Berkman was replaced by infielder Tyler Greene, who was brought in for defense at second base after Allen Craig replaced another injured outfielder, Matt Holliday. (Pete Kozma came in to make his Major League debut at second base.)

Berkman, who hasn't played full time in the outfield since the Cardinals and his Houston Astros tangled in the 2004 and 2005 NLCS, has looked competent, if not extremely mobile, in his return to the outfield. Should he miss an extended amount of time he's likely to be replaced in the outfield by backups Jon Jay and Allen Craig—if either of them isn't busy replacing other injured starters.

Pete Kozma Doubles, Breaks Implausible Debut-ometer For Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals Call Up Pete Kozma(!), Place Nick Punto On DL

Nick Punto has been placed on the disabled list following a right forearm strain, but the big news is who they decided to recall: beleaguered first-round pick Pete Kozma, who will be making his Major League debut after putting together a .220/.284/.284 line in his AAA Memphis debut. Kozma, a shortstop who was selected 18th overall in the 2007 MLB Draft, hit .243/.318/.384 in 2010, which he spent at AA Springfield. 

Kozma has been beset by whispers about his projectability from the moment he was drafted while high school wunderkind Rick Porcello remained on the board. His problems have been compounded by the Cardinals' seemingly pathological need to rush him through every level of the minor league system, which has culminated in his Major League debut with AAA on-base and slugging percentages of .284. 

The good news is that he's hit .303/.378/.485 in his last 10 games, which brought his May line in the Pacific Coast League up to .245/.322/.377. Since making his professional debut Kozma has shown surprising power, the strange positive to a pro career that's been beset by ugly batting averages and an intermittent propensity for errors. 

St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros Meet In Two-Game Set

Coming off their abbreviated sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies the St. Louis Cardinals will get just enough of the Houston Astros to precipitate another visit from Bud Norris Wednesday night. The Astros' Cardinals hoodooer-in-chief will face Kyle Lohse, while J.A. Happ will draw Kyle McClellan on Thuesday before the Cardinals move on to Kansas City to face the Royals. 

Albert Pujols is coming off a three-hit night against the Phillies; the Cardinals and their fans will be looking for additional progress from the erstwhile best-player-in-baseball, who hasn't hit a home run all month after an April in which home runs and double plays were all he was hitting. 

The Astros, who at 15-27 have the worst record in the National League, have gotten some small consolation from Brett Wallace's breakout season. The first baseman, a former first-round pick of the Cardinals, is hitting .321/.399/.470 after successfully wrestling the starting job from Carlos Lee. Along with Hunter Pence he's provided what little fireworks the Astros have offered their fans in what's become an ugly rebuilding year.