DODGERS INSIDE LOOK: QUIET NIGHT FOR CARDS' KEY HITTERS WALKER, PUJOLS, ROLEN HELD HITLESS IN GAME 3.

Byline: Heather Gripp Staff Writer

When Jose Lima came out for the ninth inning Saturday night, Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen and Jim Edmonds were waiting.

Dodgers manager Jim Tracy said if any of the St. Louis Cardinals' three MVP candidates reached base, he was going to bring in closer Eric Gagne.

It didn't happen, as Lima retired Pujols and Rolen on flyballs and Edmonds on a popup to give the Dodgers a 4-0 victory in Game 3 of the National League Division Series.

Such a scenario usually would have favored the Cardinals, who led the league in hitting during the regular season and outscored the Dodgers 16-6 in the first two games of the series.

But Cardinals hitters Larry Walker, Pujols and Rolen - batting second through fourth in the order - were a combined 0 for 12. Edmonds had two of St. Louis' five hits.

``We're not going to sit here and make excuses,'' said Walker, whose postseason offensive contributions had included two home runs in Tuesday's series-opening 8-3 victory. ``(Lima) pitched good and beat us, bottom line.''

Walker, who twice struck out looking, ended a potential eighth-inning rally by grounding out to first following a single by Tony Womack.

The closest St. Louis came to scoring was in the first, when Womack advanced to third, but Rolen struck out to end the inning.

``He's up there throwing strike one, strike two,'' Cardinals outfielder Reggie Sanders said of Lima. ``It's kind of hard to lay back. It was a lot of aggressiveness from our side. ... We didn't change our approach the later part of the game, and maybe we should have.''

St. Louis had defeated Lima last month, scoring three runs on six hits in seven innings, but Saturday the Cardinals said Lima's slider and his ability to keep the ball off the middle of the plate were his biggest adjustments.

``The last time we saw him, his slider wasn't working as well,'' said Sanders, the Cardinals' No. 7 hitter who batted .429 in the first two games of the series, but was 0 for 3 Saturday. ``That was the key to keeping us off balance. He's a smart pitcher. He knows how to pitch and gets the crowd behind him, of course.''

Walker had a simpler explanation for Lima's success.

``He got us out,'' Walker said. ``That usually works pretty good.

``He got on a roll and we couldn't stop it.''

Heather Gripp, [phone]

heather.gripp(at)dailynews.com