Astros strike early, late for 10-5 win over Cards

ST. LOUIS -- Richard Hidalgo hit a three-run home run and broke an eighth-inning tie with a sacrifice fly to help the Houston Astros beat the St. Louis Cardinals 10-5 Monday night.

Craig Biggio had three doubles, three RBIs and scored three times for the Astros. Ricky Stone (1-0) pitched one scoreless inning to get the win.

Hidalgo's homer in the first off St. Louis starter Woody Williams gave the Astros a 4-0 lead.

After the Cardinals took a 5-4 lead, the Astros tied it in the seventh when Adam Everett hit a sacrifice fly off reliever Mike Lincoln (2-1), who allowed five runs in 1 1-3 innings.

Jeff Kent was hit by a pitch leading off the eighth and went to third on Lance Berkman's single before Hidalgo's sacrifice fly made it 6-5.

Later in the inning, with the bases loaded and two outs, Biggio drove a pitch from Julian Tavarez off the left-field wall to score three. Everett brought Biggio home with a single.

The teams combined to send 16 batters to the plate in a 44-minute first inning, as hitters were apparently unbothered by the cold. The temperature, a breezy 52 degrees at the start, dropped into the 40s by the end of the game.

Jeff Bagwell doubled home Biggio, and Hildago hit a two-out homer over the left-center field wall.

Houston knuckleballer Jared Fernandez, subbing for the injured Andy Pettitte, came into the game with a 27.00 ERA -- and it got worse.

Fernandez walked three of the first five hitters, including a bases-loaded walk to Jim Edmonds that gave St. Louis its first run. A single by Scott Rolen, a sacrifice fly by Edgar Renteria and a single by Reggie Sanders tied it at 4.

Fernandez left after getting just one out. He has allowed six runs in one inning this season.

St. Louis went ahead in the second on consecutive singles by Ray Lankford, Albert Pujols and Edmonds off Brandon Duckworth.

But the Cardinals managed just three hits after the second, two singles by Renteria and one by Rolen.

Williams got a late start to spring training with tendinitis in his throwing shoulder. He pitched just five innings in the spring and made it through only three while getting no decision in a 9-4 win over Milwaukee Thursday.

He was sharp after the first inning Monday night, allowing six hits in six innings. He struck out five and walked two.

NOTES: Lankford left the game after legging out an infield single in the second with a strained right hamstring. The Cardinals have only three other players listed as outfielders on the roster -- Edmonds, Sanders and So Taguchi, though 2B Marlon Anderson and even 2B Bo Hart could play there if needed. Anderson replaced Lankford in left field.