Cardinals rock Nationals in Game 2 to even series

• St. Louis scored four runs in the bottom of the second
• Carlos Beltran hit two home runs for the Cardinals
• Jordan Zimmermann was tagged for five runs and seven hits in three innings

NL Division Series, Game 2 from St. Louis' Busch Stadium

Cardinals 12, Nationals 4: Series tied after two games

State of the Series: This National Division Series is now even at 1-1 as St. Louis rallied after dropping a 3-2 decision in Game 1 on Sunday. However, Washington still seemingly has the edge as the remainder of the best-of-five series will be played at Nationals Park beginning with Game 3 at 1:07 p.m. ET on Wednesday. Edwin Jackson (10-11, 4.03 in the regular season) is scheduled to start for the Nationals after helping the Cardinals win the World Series last year. RHP Chris Carpenter (0-2, 3.71) will start for St. Louis after going 4-0 in the postseason in 2011 but being limited to three late-season starts this year because of shoulder surgery.

Game 1 Pivot Point: St. Louis scored four runs in the bottom of the second off losing pitcher Jordan Zimmermann after Washington scored the game's first run in the top of the inning. David Freese doubled home the first run, Daniel Descalso and Jon Jay both hit RBI singles and Skip Schumaker, who pinch-hit for starting pitcher Jaime Garcia in a surprise, drove in a run with a ground out.

Man of the Moment: Right fielder Carlos Beltran had two home runs to help lead the Cardinals' 13-hit attack. It was the third two-homer game in the postseason of Beltran's career. He had one for Houston in the 2004 NLDS against Atlanta and another in the 2006 National League Championship Series for the New York Mets against St. Louis.

Needing a mulligan: Zimmermann's post-season debut was a rocky one as he was tagged for five runs and seven hits in three innings. Zimmermann allowed as many as five earned runs only once in 32 regular-season starts this year when he was rocked for eight runs in 3 2/3 innings by St. Louis on Sept. 1 at Washington. In career regular-season starts against the Cardinals, Zimmermann is 0-2 with a 9.12 ERA.

What you missed on TV: Many members of the media spending time in the Busch Stadium press box reading negative tweets about the television coverage of this series on TBS. Venerable play-by-play man Dick Stockon is getting crushed by fans of both the Nationals and Cardinals for his supposed lack of knowledge of both teams and mispronunciations of players' names.

Manager's special: Cardinals manager Mike Matheny saw the opportunity for a big inning and he didn't waste it, lifting Garcia for a pinch-hitter in the second with the Cardinals ahead 2-1 with one out and runners on first and third. The strategy worked as Shumaker drove in a run with his ground out. The Cardinals went on to have a four-run inning and Lance Lynn pitched three innings of long relief in place of Garcia.