"Maybe it was inevitable Chris Carpenter would win another game at Busch Stadium.

Maybe it had to happen on a night in late June that the Cardinals would play competent defense while generating some offense with a kick.

But Carpenter could be forgiven for having his doubts.

Threatened with a three-game sweep, Carpenter (2-7) did what stoppers do:

Facing a team carrying the game's best record, Carpenter pitched well and worked deep into a 12-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies before 40,532 who witnessed his first win at Busch Stadium since Sept. 30. He used 124 pitches to complete a seven-inning outing that included just five singles, one walk and one run against him.

A pitcher who entered his 16th start with only one win offered a flashback to the previous two seasons when he won 33 games — one year leading the National League in earned-run average, and the next in starts.

"He is our most dominant pitcher," second baseman Skip Schumaker said.

"I feel I'm still that pitcher," said Carpenter after snapping a five-game losing streak that began after his May 10 win in Chicago.

"He's there," manager Tony La Russa said. "He's been there."

A month ago the sentiment might have seemed misplaced as Carpenter wove from abbreviated start to luckless outing. His curveball misbehaved and his fastball command remained capricious. Scarring remains due to a 4.26 ERA and a NL-most 118 hits allowed.

"For me, the big key is command of my fastball," Carpenter said. "I could care less about anything else. If I command my fastball, everything else looks better."

Thursday night offered reassurance to a club that won for only the third time in its last 12 games yet reclaimed a share of the NL Central lead.

The win was the Cardinals' first in three games since first baseman Albert Pujols landed on the disabled list with a wrist fracture. It was also the first time this season Carpenter has pitched with a sizeable cushion."