Cardinal Nation went nuts Thursday night as the Redbirds salvaged the series and beat the Brewers 5-2 in St Louis. Four hits from first baseman Albert Pujols and eight strong innings from starting pitcher Chris Carpenter helped turn a 2-0 deficit into a convincing win over the Brewers. With the win, the Cardinals climb back to four with 44 games remaining. Manager Tony La Russa called it “Do or die when you get down to the last couple weeks and the numbers are staring you in the face"

The Minnesota Twins have activated first baseman Justin Morneau off the 15-day DL after his recovery from a wrist injury and neck surgery. Morneau has not played for the Twins since June 9th. He was first side lined with a left wrist injury, then had surgery on June 29th to remove a herniated disc fragment in his neck that helped to relieve pressure on a pinched nerve. The 30-year-old Canadian was batting .225 with four homers, 12 doubles and 21 RBI in 55 games prior to the injuries.

Cleveland Indians outfielder Shin-Soo Choo has been activated off the 15-day disabled list after recovering from a fractured left thumb. Choo was hurt during a June 24th game against San Francisco when he was hit by a pitch from Jonathan Sanchez. He underwent surgery four days later and just completed a minor league rehab stint. In 72 games for the Tribe entering Friday's action, Choo hits .244 with five homers and 28 RBI.

                                     === NFL ===

The Baltimore Ravens have acquired wide receiver Lee Evans from the Buffalo Bills in exchange for a 2012 draft pick. Evans had spent his first seven NFL seasons in Buffalo, which selected him with the 13th overall pick of the 2004 draft. He is coming off a disappointing 2010 campaign, finishing with a career-low 37catches and 578 yards in 13 games. An ankle injury cost him the final three games last year, ending a streak of 109 straight games played. The 30-year-old Wisconsin product has twice been a 1,000-yard receiver, and has 377 catches for 5,934 yards with 43 touchdowns in his career.

New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan stated on Friday that newly acquired wide receiver Plaxico Burress will not play in the preseason opener on Monday against the Texans. Burress, who signed with the club on July 31, will not even make the flight down to Houston while he recovers from an ankle injury that happened last week when he was running in camp.

 === BASKETBALL ===

Chris Mullin and Dennis Rodman will be the headliners during the induction ceremony for the 2011 Basketball Hall of Fame class. The other eight members of the class are Artis Gilmore, Arvydas Sabonis, Teresa Edwards, Tara VanDerveer, Tom "Satch" Sanders, Tex Winter, Herb   Magee and   Reece "Goose" Tatum.

Edgy and flamboyant, Dennis Rodman was arguably the premier small-forward rebounder of his generation and led the NBA in rebounds per game for a record seven consecutive years. Chris Mullin is already in the Hall from his days as a member of the 1992 U.S. Olympic "Dream Team" that was inducted last year, Mullin made it by himself after appearing as a finalist for   the fourth year in a row. He is best known, of course, for playing most of his career with the Golden State Warriors after starring collegiately at St. John's.

                                     === HORSE RACING ===

Veteran trainer Jerry Hollendorfer, along with fillies Open Mind, Safely Kept and Sky Beauty were inducted into the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame on Friday morning. The Historic Review Committee voted to induct 19th century horse Duke of Magenta along with champion jockey Shelby 'Pike' Barnes and celebrated trainer Matthew Byrnes.