ESPN: Zambrano quiets Cards’ offense in Edmonds’ homecoming

The return of Cubs ace Carlos Zambrano trumped the soap opera setting of Jim Edmonds’ homecoming and Albert Pujols’ 300th home run. Zambrano came off the 15-day disabled list from a shoulder strain with six spotless innings Friday night, leading Chicago to a 2-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a three-game series matching the National League’s top two teams.
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Pujols became the fifth-youngest player to 300 with an eighth-inning shot off the left-field foul pole against Bob Howry. He’s 5-for-9 with two homers against Howry, and made it to the milestone at 28 years, 170 days, beating Hall of Famer Mel Ott by one day. Alex Rodriguez is the youngest to 300 homers at 27 years, 249 days.
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Edmonds, who got a prolonged ovation before his first at-bat, was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

The Cubs now lead the wild-card leading Cards by 3.5 games, with the Brewers a game behind the Cards.