There were questions to how the St. Louis Cardinals would look in 2012 with Albert Pujols out of the lineup and Adam Wainwright back from Tommy John surgery. But after 10 games, the answer is apparently no different than last year.

The reigning world champions are 7-3 and sitting atop the NL Central standings and showing no signs of slowing down.

Part of the reason is role players stepping up. Matt Carpenter is killing the ball with a .409 average and 10 RBI in just 22 at-bats. He had five RBI in Sunday’s win against the Chicago Cubs, the first St. Louis rookie with that many batted in since third baseman David Freese in 2010.

“We’ve got some guys dinged up, so the opportunity’s there, I’m just trying to make the most of it,” Carpenter said after the game. “I couldn’t tell you if I would have dreamed of having a day like this.”The Cardinals try to create even more distance between them and the Cincinnati Reds as the teams get set for a three-game series Tuesday night.

Kyle Lohse gets the start for St. Louis, which is favored by 1 1/2 runs according to Bovada, with a -120 money line. Lohse has only allowed six hits in his two starts this year and opponents are only hitting .136 against him so far. MLB Team Props also favor the Cardinals to win the series.

The Reds (4-6) snapped out of a funk on Sunday, beating the NL East-leading Washington Nationals 8-5 in 11 innings. Prior to that, Cincinnati had scored only 10 runs in its last six games, going 1-5.

“It’s still early,” right fielder Jay Bruce told the team website. “I don’t think you can win or lose the season in the first couple of weeks. You can obviously put yourself in a better position.”

Johnny Cueto starts opposite of Lohse. He got a no-decision in his last start against the Cardinals on April 11. Matt Holliday and Jon Jay each have at least eight hits against the lefty.

Freese is a career .406 hitter against the Reds with 11 RBI.