PITTSBURGH • When Cardinals manager Mike Matheny unveiled his lineup this past Thursday for an exhibition game against the Yankees, it became clear that after a spring of batting Stephen Piscotty second something new was afoot.
They weren't going to look to him to help ignite the offense.
Now, they needed him to add depth to it.
Piscotty provided two homers that afternoon in Tampa, Fla., from the sixth spot in the lineup, and as the Cardinals open the regular season Sunday afternoon at PNC Park the young right fielder is back in the middle of the lineup.