"After another strong start from rotation favorite Kyle McClellan on Tuesday, Cardinals manager Tony La Russa refused to call off the contest and yield to the box scores. He did acknowledge the gap between McClellan and other contenders. "He's given them nothing," the manager said. "He's certainly making a claim as the starter, and that shouldn't surprise anybody. ... He's creating a heck of an act to follow. We don't have to decide yet." McClellan pitched five scoreless innings in a 4-0 victory, holding the Atlanta Braves to one hit and two walks, both in the same inning. He wiggled free of a bases-loaded mess in the second inning and struck out five. McClellan, who has an 0.75 ERA in 12 innings this spring, has seized the starting opportunity, apparently leaving only a bullpen malfunction between him and the opening-day rotation. La Russa hesitated on awarding McClellan the role Tuesday because there are still starts to make and he mentioned other factors are in play. If the Cardinals fail to find a suitable replacement for McClellan's role in the bullpen or an injury happens, the righty could be needed to stabilize. Pitching coach Dave Duncan's preference is to fill the rotation first, which partly explains why he has McClellan already on turn to start the fifth game of the regular season. "Until the last day, something could always happen," McClellan said. "There could be an injury somewhere that could affect my situation. It's something you never count on until you go out there and take the ball on the day that's yours to start. But I like my chances."" Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/sports/base...cle_982505ed-a5f4-5402-b040-40eaae7b9c42.html
