MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Chris Richard only learned half the lesson from fellow rookie Keith McDonald.

Richard homered on the first pitch he saw in the major leagues as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Minnesota Twins 8-3 Monday night.

	Jim Edmonds (15) celebrates with his Cardinal teammates after hitting a three-run homer.

McDonald hit a homer in his first big league at-bat on July 4 and then hit another two days later during his second time up.

"I asked McDonald to coach Chris about how to take those first few at-bats," joked manager Tony LaRussa.

Richard struck out swinging in his second appearance and finished the night 1-for-4.

"I guess they forgot to talk about the second (at-bat)," LaRussa said. "McDonald must want the record for himself."

Richard was called up from Triple-A Memphis on Sunday and took a red-eye flight from Colorado Springs to Minneapolis. He replaced the injured J.D. Drew and hit a 410-foot shot to center leading off the second inning.

"They told me to be ready to hit, and I was," said Richard, who became the fourth Cardinal to homer in his first major league at-bat. "I was looking for a fastball, I saw it pretty well, and put a good swing on it. It's unbelievable."

Richard's shot was the first of three by the Cardinals, who continue to lead the majors in home runs. Fernando Tatis extended the Cardinals' 2-1 lead with a two-run shot in the fifth. And Jim Edmonds hit a 431-foot homer, his 27th this season, into the upper deck in right-center to make it 7-2.

Pat Hentgen (9-6) pitched six innings for the Cardinals, raising his career record against the Twins to 13-3.

"Everybody played really well behind me, and our defense has been solid up the middle all year," Hentgen said. "I'm blessed with a team that scores runs and plays great defense."

Lincoln (0-3) pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the first with a pair of strikeouts, but gave up four runs, seven hits and four walks in only 4 1/3 innings.

"Lincoln's making some progress," said Twins' third base coach Ron Gardenhire, who continues to fill in while manager Tom Kelly is with his ailing father. "He showed some signs of making some pretty good pitches. After he got through that first inning, it looked like he relaxed a little bit."

Minnesota scored single runs in the third and seventh innings, but was unable to match the Cardinals' power. Edmonds broke an 0-for-10 streak by adding a single and a double to the homer he hit in the eighth.

"You can't keep a good hitter down," LaRussa said.

The Twins' best chance came in the seventh, when they loaded the bases with one out. But Matt Lawton's grounder off Heathcliff Slocumb turned into a double play when Jay Canizaro was caught in a rundown, and only one run came across.

Game notes
The once-dead effort to get an outdoor baseball stadium built in downtown Minneapolis may get a boost Tuesday when commissioner Bud Selig visits. Selig will address Minnesotans for Major League Baseball, a 130-member advisory committee which is seeking ways to build a Wrigley Field-style ballpark, using mostly private funds. ... St. Louis has been in first place for all but three days this season. ... Drew was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained left ankle.