The Cardinals had their pitcher with a tender ankle still in the game and their healthy lead vaporized on the scoreboard when they came to bat in the fifth inning.
Colorado, reeling but relentless, had just turned two walks and a timely double into a tie game and a potential rockslide. The Cardinals countered with something even they had not seen yet.
For the first time they had the lineup they intended, the offense they imagined.
They needed every aspect of it.
In the same inning they misplaced a four-run lead, the Cardinals regained it and held on tight for a 9-8 victory Saturday afternoon at Busch Stadium.