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(Sports Network) - Albert Pujols is having none of that three-week talk. After spending the last 15 days on the disabled list, the St. Louis first baseman is expected to be back in the lineup when the Cardinals play the rubber match of a three-game series with the Detroit Tigers today at Comerica Park.

Pujols was expected to miss at least three weeks when he suffered a strained left calf on June 10 against Cincinnati, but it now appears as if he will return after spending the minimum time on the DL. St. Louis went 6-7 in 13 games since Pujols' injury.

Cardinals manager Tony La Russa told his club's official Web site that he plans on playing Pujols today. That announcement came one day after he watched his star work out at Comerica Park on Tuesday, though La Russa also said on Wednesday he could change his mind.

However, today's interleague set in Detroit would allow the Cards to use Pujols as their designated hitter.

Pujols is batting a team-best .347 with 16 homers and 42 RBI through 65 games this year. He is also a career .484 hitter (15-for-31) versus Detroit, adding three homers and five RBI in nine games against the club.

After taking Tuesday's opener, St. Louis had no trouble with its offense last night, but still fell to Detroit by an 8-7 score. Not only did the Cards have to battle the Tigers, but both teams also endured a nearly 2 1/2-hour rain delay.

Rick Ankiel hit a pair of solo homers and knocked in three runs for St. Louis, which fell to 3-2 on a nine-game road trip that next heads to Kansas City.

Gary Sheffield had four hits, including the winning single in the bottom of the ninth inning, for the Tigers. Carlos Guillen also had four hits and smacked a three-run homer in Detroit's 11th win in 14 games. The club is now just three games under .500 (37-40) after its dreadful start to the season.

Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson had a pair of hits to push his hitting streak to 13 games. He is hitting .373 (19-for-51) over the run, which equals the career-best 13-game streak he posted from May 29-June 13 of last year.

Today's starter for the Tigers, Nate Robertson, has also matched a career streak of his own, as he has won his last three starts. Robertson, who also won three straight starts in 2004, is 5-1 over his last six outings but didn't pitch too great last time out.

The left-hander allowed five runs on seven hits over six innings while striking out five Saturday in San Diego. Still, Robertson improved his season record to 6-6 to go along with a 5.60 earned run average.

The 30-year-old is 1-0 in his career against the Cardinals, having held them to a pair of runs on six hits on May 19 of last season.

Despite a battle with elbow soreness, Todd Wellemeyer is still expected to start for the Cardinals. The righty had his last start skipped due to the ailment that likely caused him to allow a season-high eight runs and eight hits over 3 1/3 innings against the Phillies on June 13. It was also Wellemeyer's shortest outing of the season, and he had been 5-0 with a 1.75 ERA in a seven-start stretch prior to that setback.

The 29-year-old is 7-2 with a 3.67 ERA this year and 1-0 with a 5.17 ERA in seven career relief outings against the Tigers.

St. Louis and Detroit met in the 2006 World Series, which was won in five games by the Cardinals. The Tigers, though, exacted a measure of revenge with a three-game sweep of the Cards in Detroit last season and have posted wins in seven of the last eight regular-season matchups between the teams.