Cardinals, Cubs, White Sox Pick Up Victories

The St. Louis Cardinals want leadoff batter Matt Carpenter to drive the ball. He sure did Sunday. Carpenter hit a two-run homer off Kevin Gregg in the 11th inning, lifting St. Louis over Cincinnati 7-5 in a game that featured the major league debut of Cuban right-hander Raisel Iglesias for the Reds.

Carpenter's 392-foot drive to center on a full-count pitch from Gregg (0-1) followed Kolten Wong's single and delighted Cardinals' manager Mike Matheny.

"We've talked to him about utilizing his power," Matheny said. "You're going to see that from him from time to time."

Carpenter's go-ahead drive followed Jhonny Peralta's two-run, tying homer in the eighth off of Jumbo Diaz, which quieted the crowd of 41,446, Cincinnati's third sellout of the six-game homestand.

Fowler's Homer Gives Cubs 6-5 Win

LaTroy Hawkins took an up-and-coming Dexter Fowler under his wing when the speedy outfielder was just a teenager in the Colorado Rockies system. Fowler paid him back Sunday by sending Hawkins' errant slider into the right-field bleachers in his return to Coors Field. Nothing personal. Only business.

Fowler hit a two-run homer off the Colorado closer with two outs in the ninth inning, helping the Chicago Cubs rally for a 6-5 win on a blustery afternoon.

Hawkins (1-1) hung an 0-2 pitch to Fowler, who hit his first homer of the season -- against his former team, and against a good friend he thought so highly of he invited him to his wedding.

White Sox Beat Twins

The first pitch was a 96 mph fastball for a called strike. The last one was a 98 mph heater that went for a swinging strike three. Yup, Chris Sale is healthy again.

The lanky left-hander pitched six solid innings in his return from a foot injury, and the Chicago White Sox beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2 on Sunday.

Sunday, April 12 Scoreboard

Detroit 8, Cleveland 5

St. Louis 7, Cincinnati 5

Tampa Bay 10, Baltimore 7

New York Mets 4, Atlanta 3

Washington 4, Philadelphia 3

Chicago White Sox 6, Minnesota 2

Pittsburgh 10, Milwaukee 2

Houston 6, Texas 4

Kansas City 9,Los Angeles Angels 2

Seattle 8, Oakland 7

San Diego 6, San Francisco 4

Chicago Cubs 6, Colorado 5

Los Angeles Dodgers 7, Arizona 4

New York Yankees 14,Boston 4

Monday, April 13 Schedule (All Times Central)

Philadelphia at New York, 12:10 p.m.

Detroit at Pittsburgh, 12:35 p.m.

Washington at Boston, 2:05 p.m.

Kansas City at Minnesota, 3:10 p.m.

Milwaukee at St. Louis, 3:15 p.m.

Colorado at San Francisco, 3:35 p.m.

New York at Baltimore, 6 p.m.

Tampa Bay at Toronto, 6:07 p.m.

Miami at Atlanta, 6:10 p.m.

Los Angeles at Texas, 7:05 p.m.

Cincinnati at Chicago, 7:05 p.m.

Oakland at Houston, 7:10 p.m.

Seattle at Los Angeles, 9:10 p.m.

Arizona at San Diego, 9:10 p.m.