Matt Carpenter, whose bases-loaded double off Clayton Kershaw propelled St. Viktor Arvidsson Jersey . Louis to victory in its NL Division Series opener, was a 13th-round draft pick signed for $1,000 five years ago.Kolten Wong, who hit the tiebreaking, two-run homer for the Cardinals in Game 3 against the Dodgers, was a first-round selection in 2011 with a $1.3 million signing bonus.And Matt Adams, whose three-run homer in Game 4 on Tuesday put St. Louis in the NL Championship Series for the fourth straight year, cost just $25,000 to sign when the Cardinals drafted him in the 23rd round in 2009 — the 699th pick overall.Building largely from within in the free-agent era, St. Louis topped the 10 post-season teams with 17 homegrown players on its 25-man division-series roster, according to STATS.The total cost of those initial contracts: $13,082,500.Thats just more than half the $23 million the Los Angeles Angels are paying Albert Pujols, the three-time NL MVP who left the Cardinals after the 2011 World Series title for the riches of southern California.Thats something we as an organization take a lot of pride in, Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said, when you see how many of these kids came up through and are contributing, not just making it here, but thriving at this level and helping us to be able to walk in there and pop champagne.Among the post-season teams, Kansas City is second with 13 homegrown players, followed by San Francisco (12), the Angels (11), Washington and the Dodgers (10 each), Pittsburgh (nine), Baltimore and Detroit (seven each) and Oakland (one) — pitcher Sean Doolittle.While baseballs biggest spenders already are home, the final four teams rank sixth in payroll (San Francisco), 11th (St. Louis), 14th (Baltimore) and 19th (Kansas City).Baseballs collective bargaining system rewards teams that made good scouting decisions on young players, whose salaries are a fraction of what veteran stars earn.We have to use our farm system, obviously, in a variety of ways, not only to transition championship players to the major leagues, but we have to use it to acquire talent, Royals general manager Dayton Moore said.A swap brought Kansas City ace James Shields, who will start the ALCS opener against the Orioles. The Royals paid a hefty price, sending Wil Myers to Tampa in the 2012 off-season — Myers was last years AL Rookie of the Year.Like the Cardinals, Kansas City had three homegrown players drive in the go-ahead runs in the Division Series — all former high first-round draft picks who have all struggled to live up to their hype: Mike Moustakas ($4 million as second overall in 2007), Eric Hosmer ($6 million as third overall in 2008) and Alex Gordon ($4 million as second overall in 2005).Ten of Kansas Citys players were acquired in the June draft of high school and college players who reside in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, and three were signed as amateur free agents.Fifteen Cardinals were obtained in the June draft and two as amateur free agents. Five more were acquired in trades and just three signed as major league free agents: shortstop Jhonny Peralta and pitchers Randy Choate and Pat Neshek. And while Peralta was given a $53 million, four-year contract last off-season, Choate is in the middle of a $7.5 million, three-year deal. Neshek signed a minor league contract just before spring training, earned a $1 million salary after making the big league team and became a first-time All-Star.They joined a core of players who have known each other for several years.I think it does start in the minor leagues, Cardinals pitcher Michael Wacha said. Every single minor leaguer, theyre kind of preached on that whenever you get up to St. Louis, youre expected to win.John Mozeliak was hired by the Cardinals scouting department after the 1995 season, kept gaining promotions and became general manager in October 2007. His current roster includes five first-round draft picks — none higher than the 19th selection because St. Louis has had a winning record during each year of his tenure.And his group also includes passed-over players whose draft slots read a bit like a lottery ticket, with Adams joined by picks Nos. 350 (Seth Maness), 399 (Carpenter), 639 (Trevor Rosenthal), 802 (Tony Cruz) and 965 (Sam Freeman).Homegrown players arent a new trend for St. Louis: Three of them also drove in the go-ahead runs against Washington in the 2012 NL Division Series: Daniel Descalso, Allen Craig and Pete Kozma.I think it shows that they believe within the organization, Adams said. They draft guys that they can develop and are their type of player. Thats a big thing, knowing that if you get drafted by the Cardinals, you know that youre going to have a chance to come up through the organization and play in the big leagues with them.___AP Sports Writers Janie McCauley and Dave Skretta contributed to this report. Roman Josi Jersey . As each game passes (each has played close with the exception of last night) it becomes clearer just how evenly matched these two teams are and how one mistake, or one bad inning, is likely to sway the result. Pekka Rinne Jersey . Weise left the arena with a splint on his wrist and underwent tests to determine whether the tendon is torn. Winger Travis Moen will also miss some time after suffering a concussion in Mondays contest. http://www.officialpredatorsproshop.com/Predators-Mike-Ribeiro-Adidas-Jersey/ . Minutes before the final whistle of Sporting Kansas Citys 3-0 victory over a shorthanded Montreal Impact squad on Saturday afternoon, Saputo tweeted: "Our fans deserve better.OWINGS MILLS, Md. - Haloti Ngata hated watching football on television during his four-game suspension for using a substance banned by the NFL.The five-time Pro Bowl defensive tackle wasnt allowed to be with the Baltimore Ravens during practice or at their final four games. All he could do was hope they could win without him so he could play in the post-season.It was definitely rough, Ngata said Tuesday, his first day back on the field. It felt like I was in retirement watching the games, watching football during the season at home. It felt weird, but I was glad we were able to get the wins and get into the playoffs.He regrets using the amphetamine Adderall, which is used to treat narcolepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Because it is often used as a stimulant, Adderall is banned by the NFL without a prescription.I made a mistake, he acknowledged.The 30-year-old Ngata is expected to start Saturday night in Pittsburgh, and he just might be more energetic than the blockers assigned to keep him off quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.I feel amazing. Guys are yelling Fresh legs all the time, Ngata said. I just feel like a young kid, being able to jog around. Its great to be back with the fellas.And they couldnt be happier to have him back.Hes one of our guys. Hes a good teammate and a good player, quarterback Joe Flacco said. Its great to see him and Terrell (Suggs) walking out to practice together. It feels good.Suggs worre a smile that almost matched Ngatas. Kevin Fiala Jersey. The two have been fixtures on the Baltimore defence since the start of the 2006 season and own matching Super Bowl rings. Both hope to add another to their collection in the weeks ahead.It couldnt happen at a better time, Suggs said of Ngatas return. He was missed a lot in the locker room, especially by me. The locker room is back to being complete. Its good to have one of the best interior linemen in the game going into a big playoff game like this. It was a big lift.The Ravens ran a light practice Tuesday, so it was difficult to tell whether Ngata is in game shape. When he showed up at the team complex on Monday, coach John Harbaugh gave the 340-pounder a playful poke in the stomach and deemed him ready to go.Im sure hes fine, the coach said. Hes been training. Thats what he told me. He looks good and Im sure he is. Im sure hes busting out of his skin, ready to go.Although thats an exaggeration, it isnt that far from the truth. Ngata is thankful his teammates did their part to get him back on the field this season, and now hes poised to pay them back.I just feel like I owe these guys, he said, so Im going to do whatever I can to help the team.Asked if he will seek to get a prescription for the drug or just stop using it, Ngata replied, Well just see what happens. Right now Im just focused on the Steelers.___Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL Cheap NFL Jerseys Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys From China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap Jerseys ' ' '