Cardinals 6

Astros 4

ST. LOUIS – So much for Scott Rolen’s slump and so much for the Astros trying to steal a win in St. Louis.

Rolen entered the NLCS hitless in 12 at-bats and was 0-for-14 in October before breaking through with a hit in Game 1. But now he’s officially red-hot after blasting two home runs last night to lead the Cardinals to a 6-4 win over the Astros.

The victory gives the Cards a 2-0 lead as the best-of-seven series shifts to Houston for Game 3 tomorrow.

Larry Walker and Albert Pujols also homered, but it was Rolen’s bombs the sellout crowd at Busch Stadium welcomed most. His two-run rainbow gave the Cardinals a 4-3 lead in the fifth and after Houston tied the game 4-4, Pujols homered off Astros reliever Dan Miceli to start the eighth.

Rolen followed with a towering shot to left-center field for the first back-to-back jacks in the Cardinals’ lengthy postseason history.

Rolen hit 34 home runs during the regular season, but struggled at the plate at the end of the year after missing 16 games with a strained calf muscle. He went hitless in the NLDS against the Dodgers, but has found his swing against the Astros, who got home runs from Carlos Beltran and Morgan Ensberg, but were closed out by Jason Isringhausen in the ninth.

Now the Astros head back to Minute Maid Park hoping their aces Roger Clemens and Roy Oswalt can somehow even the series. At least the roof will eliminate possibility of rain that threatened last night’s game.

It drizzled throughout the day and the players came to the ballpark not knowing if the game would be played.

“I don’t really want to play in the rain,” Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell said hours before the first pitch. “Guys are slipping around, so normal balls they get to, they don’t get to. It’s even for both teams. But nobody wants a sloppy game in the league championship series.”

The rain was light enough by game time that it caused only a 28-minute delay. Astros starter Peter Munro didn’t mind the wait. The Queens native was starting his first postseason game after a regular season where the Twins released him four months ago. He went 4-7 with a 5.29 ERA in 19 regular season starts with Houston, but hadn’t pitched since Oct. 1 when he worked just 22/3 innings in a no-decision at Colorado.

He showed little rust and plenty of guts. He escaped trouble in the first, third and fourth innings as the Cardinals went hitless in their first seven at-bats with runners in scoring position.

Meanwhile, the Astros built a 3-0 lead off Cardinals starter Matt Morris on solo homers by Beltran and Ensberg and a run-scoring single by Lance Berkman in the fifth. But Munro’s charmed life ended in the home fifth when, with one out a potential 5-4-3 double-play ball netted only the 5-4. Walker then hit a 1-1 pitch over the left-field wall for a two-run homer and Pujols followed with a hard single up the middle.

Astros manager Phil Garner wasted no time yanking Munro and going right-hander reliever Chad Harville. Two pitches later, Rolen blasted his first postseason and the second two-run homer of the inning to give the Cardinals a 4-3 lead.

The Astros tied it at 4-4 in the seventh when Berkman doubled and scored on a single by Ensberg.

Now the Astros can only hope their home crowd and best pitchers can get them back tot St. Louis.

“It’s the not end of the world,” Bagwell said, “because we have got our two best guys pitching the next two games.”