Albert Pujols seeks to tie the major league record of 13 home runs in April when the St. Louis Cardinals host the league-worst Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.
Pujols hit his 12th homer of the month in the first inning Monday, finishing 2-for-4 for the Cardinals (12-7) in a 7-2 win over the Pirates.
"It's always big to take the lead," Pujols said. "You send a message right away that we're ready to play."
The first baseman has six games left to catch the April homer record shared by Ken Griffey Jr. (1997) and Luis Gonzalez (2001).
He may be able to reach the mark during this three-game series against the Pirates, against whom he is hitting .359 with 28 homers and a personal-best 83 RBIs in 84 games.
In 2005, Pujols did not reach 13 homers until June 3 and he finished the season with 41 en route to winning NL MVP honors. He could be on his way to a second straight MVP season, leading the majors in homers and RBIs (28) while batting .344.
St. Louis will give Jeff Suppan (0-2, 9.00 ERA) a chance to rebound from his shortest outing since 1998.
The right-hander allowed eight runs and eight hits in two innings of a 12-4 loss to Pittsburgh last Tuesday. It was only his second loss in 12 career starts against the Pirates and his first since 2001. He had won his five previous decisions against them.
"Some of these games, it's hard to come up with an explanation," Suppan said. "They were able to capitalize on my mistakes and put together some good at-bats, and I didn't make pitches."
The Cardinals have renewed faith in their bullpen after some early season struggles. The relievers have pitched 12 straight scoreless innings, allowing six hits and striking out nine in the last five games.
"I think they're starting to feel good about how they're throwing," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "We've shown the kind of depth that can pay off for us."
The Cardinals have not dropped a home series to the Pirates since May 30-June 1, 2003.
That may not change as the Pirates (5-16) have the worst road record in the NL at 1-10. They are also tied for the fewest wins in the league with the Florida Marlins and have the worst overall record.
"It's been going like that for a while, pretty much since Day 1," Pittsburgh right fielder Jeromy Burnitz said.
The Pirates will send Victor Santos (1-3, 5.85) to the mound as he hopes to rebound from two consecutive losses, including the most recent one to the Cardinals on Wednesday.
The right-hander pitched well, giving up two runs and two hits -- both homers -- and striking out four in six innings of a 4-0 defeat.
"I just want to have the same kind of performance I did last week," said Santos, who has received four runs of support in his three losses. "I'll just stay aggressive and throw positive strikes. Strike one is the key."
Santos has a 1-4 record with a 4.62 ERA in seven starts against the Cardinals.
Craig Wilson is mired in a 3-for-16 slump in the last five games, but leads the Pirates with six homers and 13 RBIs this season. He could bounce back Tuesday, having gone 6-for-14 (.429) with three doubles and two homers against Suppan.
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