"Sandy Alderson brought his ballpark briefing papers to Busch Stadium Wednesday, and sat with several pitchers in the afternoon, engaging them in discussion at a round table in the visitors' clubhouse.

While he did that, David Wright - the star who has seemed lost at times in the baseball canyon in Queens - stood at his locker on the other side of a wall, expressing gratitude that Citi Field was likely to become more home run-friendly next year.

"It's nice to have a front office that recognizes the situation and tries to correct it," Wright said before the Mets' 6-5 loss to the Cardinals. Chris Schwinden allowed three runs in six innings, but Pedro Beato squandered the lead by allowing a three-run homer to David Freese in the seventh. St. Louis has won four straight and 12 of 14 to move within 11/2 games of Atlanta in the wild-card race."