Pujols sizzles in Redbirds' 8-1 win

PITTSBURGH -- Albert Pujols homered and had two doubles among his five hits and drove in three runs, Jeff Suppan pitched into the eighth inning, and the Cardinals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 8-1 Tuesday night.

The Cardinals overcame the loss of third baseman Scott Rolen, who was hit in the batting helmet with a pitch by Ryan Vogelsong in the first inning.

Rolen remained in the game and scored in the Cardinals' three-run first, but did not take the field in the bottom half. He was taken out for precautionary reasons and will be reevaluated today.

Pujols went 5-for-5, his second career five-hit game, and tied a career high by scoring three runs for St. Louis, which is 20-6 in Pittsburgh since PNC Park opened in 2001. No visiting team has won more games here.

The Cardinals have at least 10 or more hits -- 13 Tuesday -- in each of their last 14 visits, going 12-2. They lead the NL in road victories, with a 17-9 record, and are 4-1 on their seven-game trip.

Suppan (5-4) won for the second time in a week against his former team. He allowed six hits and a run, striking out four and walking two in seven-plus innings.

The Pirates dropped their third in a row after winning six of eight. They are 9-16 at home.

St. Louis scored three times in the first against Vogelsong, who has allowed 20 first-inning runs in 10 starts. Opposing batters have hit .435 (20-for-46) in the first against him.

Ray Lankford walked, Pujols singled and Vogelsong then hit Rolen in the helmet, knocking him to the ground.

Rolen quickly rose to his feet and walked to first. Pitching coach Spin Williams went tot he mound to talk with Vogelsong, who then allowed a two-run single to Jim Edmonds. Edgar Renteria followed with a run-scoring groundout.

The Cardinals added two more runs in the second, the first on consecutive, two-out doubles by Tony Womack and Lankford. Pujols drove in Lankford with a sharp single to left.

Brian Boehringer relieved Vogelsong to begin the third.

Vogelsong (1-5) lost his fifth straight decision after winning his first start of the season. He allowed five hits and five runs, and struck out three and walked one in his shortest outing of the season.

Pujols made it 7-0 with a two-run home run off Boehringer in the fourth. Pujols lifted a 1-1 pitch over the left-field fence for his major league-leading 16th home run.

Daryle Ward hit a solo home run off Suppan to lead off the sixth. It was Ward's seventh home run in 19 games since he was recalled from Triple-A Nashville.

Notes: Pujols had five hits on May 23, 2003, at Pittsburgh. ... Pirates catcher Jason Kendall extended his hitting streak to 18 games with a first-inning single. Its the longest current streak in the majors and tied for the second-longest streak in the NL this season. Arizona's Danny Bautista hit safely in 21 straight games. ... Rolen scored the 700th run of his career before leaving the game. ... Hector Luna made two errors after replacing Rolen.