ST. LOUIS -- The Cardinals have their best start in the modern era. And they are doing this without their recognized ace.
St. Louis is 19-6, but they are also 8-2 since Adam Wainwright went down for the season with a torn Achilles tendon.
What happened on Monday night at Busch Stadium typified the whole Cardinals deal. They were down, 5-0, to the Cubs before they had a chance to bat. They were down, 8-4, in the middle of the sixth inning. The pitching wasn't up to standards. After three straight extra-inning games over the weekend totaling 35 innings, there wasn't much St.