Adam Wainwright

  Tonight at 8:15 RHP Joe Blanton (0-2, 8.41 ERA) vs. St. Louis RHP Kyle Lohse (3-0, 1.97).   Tomorrow at 8:15 p.m. RHP Brett Myers (1-2, 4.83) vs. St. Louis RHP Adam Wainwright (3-0, 2.76).

  The Nationals are 6-6 against the Braves this season, but they are pitching somebody named Yunesky Maya against Derek Lowe in the series opener. The Braves had better take advantage of their three home games against the Nats, because they will be followed by a nine-game road trip to New York, Philadelphia, and Washington. The Braves are 31-41 on the road this season, including 7-11 against those three NL East teams.   The Reds are pulling away from the Cardinals, and it appears they will be the first National League team to clinch a division title.

8:15, Busch Stadium, St. Louis. TV: Channel 17. Radio: WPHT (1210-AM); WUBA (1480-AM) Spanish. Pitching matchup: RHP Roy Halladay (9-3, 2.56) at RHP Kyle McClellan (6-3, 3.96) HALLADAY vs. CARDINALS: This is Halladay's first start against St. Louis this season. He faced them once last season, allowing two runs in seven innings of a 7-2 win at Citizens Bank Park. Halladay took a no decision in the Phillies' come-from-behind win over the Marlins last Wednesday. He'll get his second crack at reaching double digits in wins tonight.

Now it can be told: Astros owner Drayton McLane told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he knew Roy Oswalt wanted to be traded to the Cardinals and wouldn't have stopped a deal. "That was not a roadblock," he said. "I think [trading within the division] used to be something you avoided. That's not how I viewed it. It just never really materialized. " The Phillies, obviously, are pleased that the Cardinals came up short. WAR games: Wins Above Replacement is a sabermetric tool developed by Sean Smith of BaseballProjection.

THE STORY circulating the Internet about Corey Fisher's 105 points in a summer-league game actually appears to be true. Fisher, it seems, put up the triple figures on Saturday at the Watson Gleason Playground in the Bronx, Fisher's 'hood. Silly us for doubting the Internet. A spokesman at Villanova was unable to reach Fisher for comment for us, but coach Jay Wright talked to him yesterday and shared a portion of the conversation with Daily News sports writer Bob Cooney.

Atlanta Braves minor league manager Luis Salazar has lost an eye after he was struck in the face by a line drive while watching a spring training game. Braves general manager Frank Wren said yesterday that doctors were unable to save Salazar's left eye after the accident March 9. The former major league player is otherwise recovering from his injuries and expects to manage Lynchburg of the Class A Carolina League this season. Salazar, 54, was standing against the railing on the top step of the dugout during a game between the Braves and St. Louis Cardinals when Brian McCann fouled a ball in his direction.

TAKING A QUICK spin around the major leagues while trying to figure out whether Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is the next Ichiro or Irabu. ON THE WAY UP   Marlins Nationals Angels ON THE WAY DOWN   Brewers Cardinals Phillies MANAGERS ON THE HOT SEAT (aka calling Ryne Sandberg) Fredi Gonzalez, Braves Don Mattingly, Dodgers Jim Tracy, Rockies -  Thanks to playoff expansion, a team can now finish third in its division and get into the playoffs.

Tony who? Mark McGwire drew a standing ovation before the Cardinals' home opener Monday, as the fans of St. Louis made it clear that his admitted steroid use is a distant memory. McGwire, the Cards' new hitting coach, rode in the back of a dark blue flatbed truck around the warning track in the team's annual procession. Cheers for the big slugger dwarfed the response for manager Tony La Russa. After jumping down from the truck, McGwire shook hands with the greatest Red Bird of them all - Hall of Famer Stan Musial, who still made it to opening day at the age of 89. In the company of aces How good is Roy Halladay?

Two old friends had their fun, then got down to business. This could have been John Smoltz and Greg Maddux in the prime of their brilliant careers when they were Atlanta Braves teammates, not opponents. Smoltz got the best of Maddux in their first head-to-head matchup since 1992, earning the win when the Braves rallied for two runs in the seventh inning to beat the visiting San Diego Padres, 3-2, last night. Both pitchers - with 533 wins and five Cy Young Awards between them - were eager to get the best of the other after spending 11 years as teammates.

TAKING A QUICK spin around the major leagues while trying to figure out whether Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is the next Ichiro or Irabu. ON THE WAY UP   Marlins Nationals Angels ON THE WAY DOWN   Brewers Cardinals Phillies MANAGERS ON THE HOT SEAT (aka calling Ryne Sandberg) Fredi Gonzalez, Braves Don Mattingly, Dodgers Jim Tracy, Rockies -  Thanks to playoff expansion, a team can now finish third in its division and get into the playoffs.

To Lance Berkman, this season has been about meeting, rather than exceeding, expectations. A player who came to the Cardinals as a well-worn, free-agent first baseman enters the postseason as one of the National League's most productive outfielders. A team projected to miss the playoffs following the loss of ace Adam Wainwright will begin a best-of-five division series Saturday against the five-time NL East champion Phillies. Others may be impressed. Berkman said an often-trying season has brought him and the Cardinals to an appropriate place.

So who are these St. Louis Cardinals that so lately arose as roadblocks between the Phillies and the destiny conferred on them by a $172 million payroll and a wildly expectant city? Are the wild-card Cards merely happy to be here, beneficiaries of the Braves' unprecedented Fall fall? Or did their National League-best 18-8 September reflect their true nature and abilities? Have they been dangerously overlooked? Or, after their desperate late charge, hopelessly overcooked?

8:15, Busch Stadium, St. Louis. TV: Channel 17. Radio: WPHT (1210-AM); WUBA (1480-AM) Spanish. Pitching matchup: RHP Roy Halladay (9-3, 2.56) at RHP Kyle McClellan (6-3, 3.96) HALLADAY vs. CARDINALS: This is Halladay's first start against St. Louis this season. He faced them once last season, allowing two runs in seven innings of a 7-2 win at Citizens Bank Park. Halladay took a no decision in the Phillies' come-from-behind win over the Marlins last Wednesday. He'll get his second crack at reaching double digits in wins tonight.

Atlanta Braves minor league manager Luis Salazar has lost an eye after he was struck in the face by a line drive while watching a spring training game. Braves general manager Frank Wren said yesterday that doctors were unable to save Salazar's left eye after the accident March 9. The former major league player is otherwise recovering from his injuries and expects to manage Lynchburg of the Class A Carolina League this season. Salazar, 54, was standing against the railing on the top step of the dugout during a game between the Braves and St. Louis Cardinals when Brian McCann fouled a ball in his direction.

  The Nationals are 6-6 against the Braves this season, but they are pitching somebody named Yunesky Maya against Derek Lowe in the series opener. The Braves had better take advantage of their three home games against the Nats, because they will be followed by a nine-game road trip to New York, Philadelphia, and Washington. The Braves are 31-41 on the road this season, including 7-11 against those three NL East teams.   The Reds are pulling away from the Cardinals, and it appears they will be the first National League team to clinch a division title.

Now it can be told: Astros owner Drayton McLane told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he knew Roy Oswalt wanted to be traded to the Cardinals and wouldn't have stopped a deal. "That was not a roadblock," he said. "I think [trading within the division] used to be something you avoided. That's not how I viewed it. It just never really materialized. " The Phillies, obviously, are pleased that the Cardinals came up short. WAR games: Wins Above Replacement is a sabermetric tool developed by Sean Smith of BaseballProjection.

THE STORY circulating the Internet about Corey Fisher's 105 points in a summer-league game actually appears to be true. Fisher, it seems, put up the triple figures on Saturday at the Watson Gleason Playground in the Bronx, Fisher's 'hood. Silly us for doubting the Internet. A spokesman at Villanova was unable to reach Fisher for comment for us, but coach Jay Wright talked to him yesterday and shared a portion of the conversation with Daily News sports writer Bob Cooney.

The moment Roy Oswalt waived his no-trade clause and agreed to join the Phillies, many among the red-clad faithful could hear the sound of the motorcade revving for the next World Series championship parade. Certainly, the deal was made with October in mind. Along with a Cy Young Award winner, Roy Halladay, and the 2008 World Series MVP, Cole Hamels, Oswalt gives the Phillies the kind of seasoned and accomplished troika that would make them difficult to beat in the postseason. Nonetheless, other National League contenders won't be cowed by the prospect of matching their three top-of-the-rotation starters - the key to postseason success - against Halladay, Oswalt, and Hamels.