Cardinals look to Pujols as Rangers come to town in search of first title

THE Texas Rangers can wrap up their first ever World Series in St Louis tonight unless the hosting Cardinalsrediscover their hitting form in front of their own fans at Busch Stadium (ESPN America, 00.30am).

St Louis trail their American League opponents 3-2 in the series after failing to capitalise on Albert Pujols’ historic three home runs in Dallas on Saturday night, a game which gave the visitors a 2-1 lead overall.

Pujols, who will become a free agent once the current season ends and isexpected to command a record-breaking contract from either his current club or whoever manages to prise him away, was just the third player to achieve the feat during the Fall Classic — Babe Ruth did it twice in the 1920s while Reggie Jackson went deep three times against the LA Dodgers to help win the 1977 title, also for the New York Yankees.