Cardinals 9, Cubs 2
Albert Pujols recorded his 2,000th career hit and Edwin Jackson won his St. Louis debut as the host Cardinals defeated the Chicago Cubs 9-2 on Friday night.
Pujols, whose milestone hit came on an RBI double in the eighth inning, became the the 12th-quickest player to reach 2,000 hits - he did it in his 1,650th game.
Jackson, acquired Wednesday from the White Sox in a three-way trade, allowed one run over seven innings.
David Freese hit a three-run homer in the fourth. The 394-foot blast followed a Pujols double and Matt Holliday single.
The Cardinals improved to 6-1 against their archrivals this season.
Cubs starter Matt Garza (4-8), who was coming off three outstanding outings, was touched for six runs in 5 2/3 innings.
The Cardinals' Lance Berkman, who leads the National League with 27 home runs, missed his third straight game with a shoulder strain .
Cubs slugger Aramis Ramirez went 0-for-4 and is 2-for-24 over his last five games.
Pujols became the fifth Cardinal to reach 2,000 hits, joining Stan Musial (3,630), Lou Brock (2,713), Rogers Hornsby (2,110) and Enos Slaughter (2,063).