DETROIT (AP) -- Damion Easley has just about shaken off the rust.

Easley, who missed nearly five weeks with a variety of injuries, had his first three-hit game of the season, including one of three Detroit homers to back Brian Moehler as the Tigers beat the St. Louis Cardinals 10-1 Saturday.

"Sitting out that long, you forget some things," said Easley, who came off the disabled list June 2. "It's trial and error. But, my stroke and my approach to the ball in spring training were so simple that if I find it, I should be able to keep it."

Brad Ausmus and Dean Palmer also homered for the Tigers, who recorded their largest victory margin this season.

"Damion is starting to swing the bat very well," Detroit manager Phil Garner said. "He's just about back to where he was in spring training."

Mark McGwire, who has one homer since May 24, went 2-for-4 and stole his first base in nearly two years in the fourth inning. J.D. Drew homered for the Cardinals.

"That's called a small consolation," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said.

Moehler (3-3) gave up one run and five hits with one walk and four strikeouts in seven innings. Doug Brocail took over to start the eighth and Allen McDill pitched the ninth for Detroit.

Rick Ankiel (5-3), coming off an 11-strikeout, no-walk performance in five innings against Cleveland in his previous start, wasn't as sharp against the Tigers. He gave up four runs -- two earned -- and seven hits with four walks and three strikeouts in six innings. He threw 99 pitches.

"We had a very good scouting report on him," Garner said. "And the report was: If he's on, just sit back and watch, because there's not much you can do about it.

"But the report also said that if he's not on, he's very beatable, and I think we saw that tonight, too."

The two unearned runs were the result of Ankiel's own error in the third when the Tigers took a 2-0 lead after two were out.

Ausmus, who walked, scored from first when Ankiel -- who went down on one knee fending off a line smash off Juan Encarnacion's bat -- got up and made a hurried throw that bounced past McGwire at first base for an error.

"It really changed the momentum of the game," Ankiel said. "I pretty much lost if for myself."

Juan Gonzalez followed with an RBI single that scored Encarnacion.

Bobby Higginson then doubled to right, but Gonzalez -- trying to score from first -- was cut down at the plate on a nice relay from Eric Davis to second baseman Fernando Vina to catcher Mike Matheny.

A two-run single by Ausmus made it 4-0 in the fourth.

"Not good," Ankiel said. "For some reason, I wasn't as comfortable as I am sometimes. Unfortunately, it didn't work out."

Drew made it 4-1 with a solo homer, his ninth, in the seventh, but Heathcliff Slocumb, starting the seventh for St. Louis, was greeted by Easley's second homer.

The Tigers scored five runs in the eighth off Mike Matthews. Palmer hit his 13th homer -- and second in two nights -- and Easley added an RBI single.

"Today, if felt good," Easley said. "It was one of those days where I didn't jump at the ball. I let it come to me."

Ausmus capped the inning with a three-run homer.

"I think they're a well put-together team," La Russa said. "The thing I'm thinking is: They probably think we're not really good. They're probably thinking we're overrated."

Game notes
McGwire, who missed two games earlier in the week with a sore hamstring, has 12 career steals. His last steal came Aug. 20, 1998, against the New York Mets in the second game of a doubleheader. ... RHP Matt Wheatland, whom the Tigers made the eighth pick overall in the baseball draft, was at Comerica Park and shagging balls during batting practice. The 18-year-old returned to San Diego after the game where he is to graduate from Rancho Bernardo High School this week. ... Vina broke an 0-for-15 skid when he started the game with a single. ... The Tigers announced a crowd of 39,053 for this game, third-largest of the season at Comerica.