The Rangers first home game in the 2011 World Series was a major league blowout.
The Rangers' trouble started early with St. Louis Allen Craig hitting a solo home run to bring in the first of the Cardinals' 16 total runs.
By the fourth, both teams were on the board, with the Rangers picking up three, including a two-run homer from Nelson Cruz. They still trailed behind the Cardinals, who brought home four runners in the inning.
Part of that run was due to a fielder's choice error by Mike Napoli, with a threw to home just out of reach of catcher Yorvit Torrealba who scrambled to retrieve the ball as two runners scored for St. Louis.
After a single run in the top of the fifth for the Cardinals, the Rangers came back with a mini-rally, bringing three home. As the fifth stretched to over a half-hour, the Rangers brought it within two, starting the sixth at six to the Cardinals eight.
But right as the Rangers got close, a three-run homer from Albert Pujols put it out of reach again. Alexi Ogando, normally a strong weapon in the Rangers' bullpen didn't even last the whole sixth after Pujols big hit and two walks -- Washington pulled in Michael Gonzales after Ogando loaded the bases.
One more Cardinal crossed home in the top of the sixth, leaving the game at 12 to 6. And there was no rally at the bottom for the Rangers, with Josh Hamilton hitting into a double play and Michael Young striking out to end the inning.
Pujols added two more to the Cardinals score at the top of the seventh with another two-run blast. After the seventh-inning stretch, the Rangers brought one home with a sacrifice fly.
Pujols later tied Reggie Jackson's World Series record of hitting three home runs in a single game to take the score to 16 to 7 at the top of the ninth.
The game saw 23 runners cross home plate between both teams. Only eight runs, combined, were scored in the first two games of the series in St. Louis. The Cardinals became the first team in major league history to score multiple runs in four consecutive innings.
The Rangers suffered multiple errors in the game, with two fielding issues from Elvis Andrus and Ian Kinsler, and the bad play at the plate from Mike Napoli. The officiating had some bad calls, too, with a missed call at first base when Napoli tagged Matt Holliday on the shoulder before he reached the bag. Holliday was called safe and turned out to be one of the runners brought home in the fourth.
With the series at 2-1, the Cardinals could win the fall classic in Arlington on Monday during Game 5.
