Padres win behind a great performance by Clayton Richard

The Padres win again and have a chance for their first season-opening sweep since 1984.

Pitcher Clayton Richard had two RBIs to match his career high without getting the ball out of the infield and pitched six solid innings in an 11-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. The Padres broke it open with a six-run fifth that included four hits, four walks and a sacrifice fly.

Albert Pujols homered on the 10th anniversary of his major league debut and Allen Craig, subbing for ailing Matt Holliday, had a two-run single for the Cardinals. St. Louis led 2-0 after one inning and 3-2 after three but Westbrook (0-1) was knocked out after retiring only one of six batters in the Padres' six-run sixth.

Chase Headley had a career best-tying four RBIs, including a two-run homer in the ninth for the Padres. They'll go for their first three-game sweep in St. Louis since June 23-25, 1980, on Sunday with Dustin Moseley facing Jaime Garcia.

The Padres' last sweep to open the season was a two-gamer in 1984 at home against the Pirates. They haven't opened the season with a three-game sweep since April 8-10, 1969, their inaugural season, at home against the Houston Astros.

Cardinals pitchers totaled eight walks, two of them intentional but also two with the bases loaded.

Three of the Cardinals' five hits off Clayton Richard came in a first capped by Craig's two-run single. The only other damage came from Pujols' first hit of the season, a homer leading off the third put St. Louis ahead 3-2 and ended an 0-for-6 start that featured a career-worst three double-play balls in the opener.

Richard, who had entered 2-9 with a 5.63 on the road, allowed only two baserunners the rest of his outing.

Richard has nine career RBIs, including three two-run games. His perfectly executed squeeze bunt tied it at 2 in the second and Jason Motte walked him on four pitches for the fifth run in the Padres' fifth.

A pair of infield hits, a sacrifice and an intentional walk loaded the bases in the fifth ahead of Ryan Ludwick's five-pitch run-scoring walk to snap a 3-all tie and Headley's two-run single chased Westbrook. The right-hander walked five, one below his career worst, and four of them produced runs.

San Diego was 3-6 to start the 2010 season, in which it was eliminated on the final day of the season.

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