Last night in Cincinnati, the St. Louis Cardinals victory was overshadowed by the loss of Albert Pujols.  El Hombre reinjured his calf when he slipped coming out of the batters box and this time, the injury is much more serious.  Joe Strauss, Cardinal insider, is reporting that the injury is of the grade 2 variety, which in layman's terms means that Pujols has a slight tear of the calf muscle.  From what I've read and heard, normal recovery time for an injury like this is anywhere from 5-8 weeks, which means Pujols is at best out until the All-Star break. 

With the Cardinal team sitting at 12 games over .500 for the first time in a couple of years, this injury couldnt come at a worse time.  Pujols is not only one of the best hitters in the game, but he's also a very good defensive first baseman.  He also adds another dimension to this team, the threat of a baserunner.  There is a reason why a guy like Ryan Ludwick has 50 RBI's in the middle of June, teams have had no problem putting Pujols on base and forcing someone else to beat them.  Both Ludwick and Troy Glaus have done that to a point this year and with Pujols out now til the middle or end of July, the Cardinals will have to count on others to set up.  Obviously, you cant replace the value or production of an Albert Pujols but that doesnt mean this team will fold.  I've noticed one thing about this team this year that I didnt see last year......HEART.  There were too many times last year where the Cardinals showed little or no spark and got spanked consistently.  I think one of the things the young guys have brought to this team is the hunger to want to win everytime they play.  With a 162 game season, its normal for a team to lay an egg now and then but for the most part, the Cardinals have battled and played a hard 9 everytime they've crossed the baselines.  This team has a chip on its shoulder after seeing how all the "experts" picked them to finish 5th in the division.  So far, they have exceeded expectations with strong pitching, timely hitting and strong defensive play.  I would expect nothing less now that Pujols is gone.

If this team can survive the next month and a half by playing .500 ball, then they will find themselves in a great position once August rolls around....either in the division or the wildcard.  By August, the Cardinals could conceivably have both Pujols and Chris Carpenter back in the fold, which would only help in there chances to make the postseason.  Until then, they will need the Rick Ankiel's, Troy Glaus', Ryan Ludwick's, Joe Mather's, Kyle Lohse's and Mitchell Boggs' of the world to pick up the slack.  Judging by the results so far through the first 2 and a quarter months, I wouldnt count out the Cardinals just yet