"Monday night's 9-3 Cardinals win over Seattle marked an even 100 major-league starts for righthander Adam Wainwright. Since he became a member of the rotation in 2007, Wainwright has compiled a 53-27 mark in those 100 starts and has pitched six innings or more an almost unbelievable 45 times in his last 46 starts.

"I'd like to have a few hundred more here," said Wainwright, who then joked, "It's never too early to start talking about extensions, is it?"

Made aware of his 45-in-46 streak, Wainwright said, "I should have had that (46th) one, too. And I blew it. Six runs in the fifth."

On Sept. 4, 2009, Wainwright carried a five-run lead into the bottom of the fifth at Pittsburgh but allowed the Pirates to score all six of their runs in that inning, and he was pinch hit for in the next inning. That's the only flaw in his endurance record since his second start of last season.

The streak "tells you a lot," offered manager Tony La Russa. "No. 1, obviously you've got to have talent to pitch that deep in the game and go through the lineup several times.

"But I think it's a great example of how tough he is mentally. He goes out there and wants to pitch for a long time. It's very demanding mentally to keep concentrating and pushing and pushing and pushing when it's your turn."

Ichiro Suzuki got Wainwright's attention, not that Wainwright wasn't already focused, in the top of the first with a 422-foot homer on the second pitch of the game. The homer was the first given up by Wainwright to a lefthanded hitter this season (righthanded hitters have five).

"I've heard about (Suzuki)," said Wainwright, who had never faced the Mariners. "I've heard he could win the Home Run Derby if he wanted to. I heard he could hit 20 home runs in a row in (batting practice). I know he has pop. Everybody knows he has power — especially (on) the pitch I threw him. If he could pick one pitch to hit out, that would be the one pitch, I guarantee you."

But after the Mariners' Chone Figgins ran the Mariners to their second tally of the first inning, Wainwright (9-4) allowed just one infield hit from the second through the seventh before leaving after giving up two hits in a Mariners surge that quickly was halted by Jason Motte."