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BOX SCORE
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GAME LOG
MIAMI (AP) -- Thirty-year-old rookie Chuck Smith is one reason
the Florida Marlins already have matched last year's wins total.
Smith allowed four hits in eight innings and Mike Lowell hit a
two-run homer in the first to help Florida beat the St. Louis
Cardinals 3-1 Tuesday night.
|  | | Mike Lowell's two-run homer in the first gave Marlins starter Chuck Smith all the offense he needed to beat St. Louis. |
The victory was the Marlins' 64th, matching their total in 1999,
when they had the worst record in the National League.
"With a month left, that's awesome," Lowell said. "It shows
we're getting better. It would be nice to win 10 or 15 more than
last year. That would be a good jump."
Smith struck out nine, walked three and gave up a home run to
Edgar Renteria in the seventh. The right-hander has a 3.55 ERA, but
his record is just 3-5 because of poor run support.
Smith was in his 10th minor-league season before the Marlins
acquired him from the Texas Rangers organization and put him into
the rotation in June.
"You're always going to have a chip on your shoulder from time
spent in the minor leagues," he said. "But that's over. I'm just
trying to survive and bulldoze me a career."
Florida snapped St. Louis' three-game winning streak and beat
Pat Hentgen (13-10), who had won his previous three starts.
The Cardinals went down in order only twice against Smith but
never managed more than one hit in an inning.
"He was very impressive," manager Tony La Russa said. "He
made a lot of great pitches and deserved to win. We had the tape on
him, so we knew what we were getting into. We knew he had good
stuff."
The Cardinals' Ray Lankford went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts
and was unhappy with how plate umpire Marty Foster called Smith's
pitches.
"He was giving him a lot of pitches, not only just off the
plate, but even further than that," Lankford said. "There were a
bunch of balls off the plate. When you start swinging at pitches
out of the zone, it really gives the pitcher the upper hand."
Antonio Alfonseca, throwing fastballs that peaked at 98 mph,
pitched a perfect ninth for his major league-leading 37th save in
41 chances.
Florida's Cliff Floyd, activated from the disabled list before
the game, made an immediate impact in the first inning. He singled
with two outs, and Lowell then belted a Hentgen fastball for his
19th home run.
"I made one mistake, and it missed by a couple of inches,"
Hentgen said. "That's all it took. It wasn't the right pitch at
the right time."
Floyd added a sacrifice fly in the fifth to make the score 3-0,
then left the game. He missed 28 games with a knee injury, and the
Marlins plan to limit his at-bats for a few games.
"He's such a force," Lowell said. "He brings a lot to the
table."
Renteria hit his 16th home run, breaking the Cardinals' previous
record for homers by a shortstop, 15 by Solly Hemus in 1952.
Hentgen gave up three runs and seven hits in six innings.
Luis Castillo singled in the fifth and swiped second for his
51st stolen base, a career high. He took third on Mark Kotsay's
infield hit and scored on Floyd's flyout.
Game notes
Cardinals 2B Fernando Vina was a late scratch from the
lineup because of sore left ribs. ... Cardinals OF Jim Edmonds is
in an 0-for-19 slump that has dropped his average below .300 for
the first time since opening day. ... Florida OF Mark Kotsay fouled
two balls off his shin and left the game in the eighth inning with
a bad bruise. ... Marlins OF Preston Wilson didn't start but
entered the game in the sixth inning. Wilson has played in all 131
games. ... Smith had been 0-4 at home despite a 2.56 ERA. ... The
Cardinals have scored one run for Hentgen in his two losses to
Florida this year.
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ALSO SEE
Baseball Scoreboard
St. Louis Clubhouse
Florida Clubhouse
RECAPS
Boston 8
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