Redbirds begin NL title defense, opens season against Astros

HOUSTON -- Following an improbable World Series sweep by the Boston Red Sox, the St. Louis Cardinals quickly went from NL champions to historical footnote.

That feeble finish overshadowed a season in which St. Louis won a major league-best 105 games and rallied to beat the Houston Astros in a classic seven-game NL championship series.

Understandably, the Cardinals are eager to forget about their dismal ending to 2004.

"You get to choose what you think," St. Louis manager Tony La Russa said Monday. "There's a lot of difference between walking around as National League champions with the positive vibe and being a World Series loser. Being negative and thinking you're a loser doesn't give you very much energy to go on."

Hoping to conjure some of those good memories, the Cardinals open the 2005 season at Houston tonight in a rematch of last year's NLCS. Chris Carpenter starts for St. Louis against Roy Oswalt, the NL's only 20-game winner in 2004.

The two-game series ends Wednesday with St. Louis' Jason Marquis facing Andy Pettitte, who's hoping to bounce back from left elbow injuries that sent him to the DL three times.

Roger Clemens will pitch for Houston on Friday against Cincinnati.

Much has changed for both teams since they met last October, with only St. Louis resembling its playoff club of a year ago.

The Cardinals significantly bolstered a thin rotation that doomed them against Boston, becoming the first team since the 1932 Chicago Cubs to enter the season with five 15-game winners.

Offseason trade pickup Mark Mulder won 17 games and is eager to answer doubts brought on by a late-season swoon in Oakland. Jeff Suppan (16), Marquis (15) and Carpenter (15) set career high for wins, and Matt Morris (15) is ready to go following offseason shoulder surgery.

St. Louis still might have the NL's best lineup despite losing shortstop Edgar Renteria, second baseman and leadoff hitter Tony Womack and catcher Mike Matheny to free agency. La Russa expects new shortstop David Eckstein and second baseman Mark Grudzielanek to be just as productive offensively and defensively as the guys they're replacing.

"We have a chance to be real good," La Russa said. "It's kind of neat to think of us as favorites."

A year after being trendy favorites in the NL Central and rallying to earn the wild-card berth, the Astros are rebuilding their lineup following a difficult offseason.

All-Stars Jeff Kent (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Carlos Beltran (New York Mets) chose new homes in free agency. A third All-Star, center fielder Lance Berkman, tore up a knee playing flag football at a church function, and promising but injured pitcher Wade Miller was let go.

"We lost Beltran and Kent, so some of these kids are going to have to grow up," first baseman Jeff Bagwell said. "These kids will be stuck in a position where the organization and fans expect a lot. It's just a tough situation to be in."

Astros manager Phil Garner has embraced the change, and on Monday afternoon, he unveiled an opening day lineup that included an outfield with two rookies (Willy Taveras and Luke Scott) and an unproven second-year player (Jason Lane).

"Most people are picking the Cardinals and Cubs to finish 1-2 in the division -- and I understand that," Garner said. "We have a lot of unknowns. But I do believe this team has a chance to be more exciting. It won't sit around."

No matter the changes to the rosters, the Cardinals and Astros have developed a healthy rivalry. And remember: Hardly anyone thought St. Louis would be 13 games better than Houston last season.

"I don't think anybody is going to read a ton into this game," Astros closer Brad Lidge said of the opener. "It'll still all come down to the last month of the season."