Carlos Beltran injury: Cardinals outfielder back in the lineup for Game 5

St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Carlos Beltran will return to the lineup on Friday night after missing Game 4 of the NLCS with a sore left knee.

The outfielder will reportedly bat second for the Cards on Friday night and according to ESPN's Jayson Stark, the 14-year veteran received acupuncture treatment on the knee on Friday afternoon, then got nearly five hours of treatment at Busch Stadium and is ready to play in Game 5.

Beltran injured the knee grounding into a double play in Game 3 and was replaced in the lineup by Matt Carpenter, who hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the third inning to lead St. Louis to victory. Beltran was limited to pinch-hitting duty for Game 4 on Thursday night, and was 3-for-7 with two doubles, a home run and two RBI through the first two games of the NLCS.

First pitch for Game 5 is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT and the game will be televised on FOX.

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A Carlos Beltran injury could have spelled trouble for the Cardinals offense in the NLCS. But they've had a secret weapon all season for exactly this purpose.

Carlos Beltran injury 'not serious'; could return for NLCS Game 4

Carlos Beltran left Game 3 of the NLCS in the first inning with an apparent left knee strain, but the injury is not serious and he could return to the lineup for Game 4, according to Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com.

Beltran is 3-for-7 with two doubles, a home run and two RBI through the first two games of the NLCS vs. the San Francisco Giants.

In nine games this postseason, Beltran is hitting .400 with three home runs and six RBI.

Beltran was replaced in the lineup by Matt Carpenter, who hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the third inning of Game 3 to put the Cardinals ahead 2-1 over the Giants. Carpenter is 2-for-8 with one home run in seven postseason games this year.

Beltran is officially listed as day-to-day by the Cardinals but could be ready for Thursday's Game 4 in St. Louis.

Carlos Beltran injury: St. Louis Cardinals RF leaves Game 3 with knee strain

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Carlos Beltran left Game 3 of the National League Championship Series against the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday afternoon with a left knee strain, per MLB.com's Jennifer Langosch. The Cardinals have listed Beltran as day-to-day.

After exiting in the second inning, Beltran was replaced in the lineup, and in right field, by Matt Carpenter. In his first at-bat of the game, Carpenter proceeded to his a two-run homer off of Giants starter Matt Cain to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead. Carpenter did not play in the first two games of the series, and was 1-for-5 in the postseason prior to Wednesday's game.

Beltran owns 14 career postseason home runs, and is a lifetime .378/.489/.838 hitter across seven playoff series. Through Game 2 of the current series, Beltran was 12-for-29 with three home runs in the 2012 postseason, including a homer in the Cardinals' NLCS Game 1 victory in San Francisco.

Cardinals vs. Giants score update: Matt Carpenter, replacing Carlos Beltran, homers to put Cards on top

Matt Carpenter came into the St. Louis Cardinals' Game 3 matchup with the San Francisco Giants to replace Carlos Beltran—who left after the first inning with a knee strain—but he made an impact in his own right almost immediately, hitting a long home run off Matt Cain in his first at-bat of the game to put the Cardinals on top by a score of 2-1 after three innings.

Carpenter is now 5-5 off Cain in his short career, and 2-6 with three RBI in the postseason; he had a pinch-hit RBI in the Cardinals' Wild Card win over the Atlanta Braves.

Carpenter's job all season has been to fill in for aching veterans—he got his big opportunity as Lance Berkman's caddy, and he's found himself at first base and right field on behalf of Carlos Beltran and Allen Craig. In fact, one of the players he filled in for least was David Freese, the injury-prone third baseman for whom he makes a perfect backup.

In Game 3 of the NLCS he found himself, on very short notice, playing right, a position he's been uncomfortable with throughout the regular season. And through one at-bat and a few innings, it's worked out just-about-perfectly.

Carlos Beltran injury: St. Louis star leaves Cardinals vs. Giants Game 3 in 2nd inning

Carlos Beltran injury speculation bubbled up out of Busch Stadium in the second inning of the St. Louis Cardinals' NLCS Game 3 vs. the San Francisco Giants, when the Cardinals' star right fielder was pulled from the game after grounding into a double play in the game's first inning. Beltran's hand, which has given him trouble for much of the season, was wrapped on Monday according to a tweet from Joe Strauss, who suggested he might have reaggravated it. Beltran tweeted at the time that—well, he tweeted this—

My hand feels super good. nothing to worry

— Carlos Beltran (@carlosbeltran15) October 16, 2012

For what it's worth, Carlos Beltran is one of the more delightfully positive human beings on Twitter—he's like Rob Lowe on Parks and Recreation. In any case, the Cardinals are now without him for the rest of Wednesday's Game 3. In his place Mike Matheny sent designated caddy Matt Carpenter, who filled in for Beltran, Lance Berkman, David Freese, and Allen Craig at various moments in the 2012 season.

He's not really a right fielder, but he's a fine hitter, and the Cardinals' best bet for filling the offensive gap left by Beltran.