Carlos Beltran was in the lineup for the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday night, just one day after a visit to the hospital following an incredible catch in right field at Fenway Park.

Beltran was diagnosed with a rib contusion after stealing a grand slam from David Ortiz in the second inning of Game 1 on Wednesday night. He left the game and initially didn't have much hope of playing in the second game of the World Series.

"When I left the ballpark [Wednesday] I have very little hope that I was going to be in the lineup with the way that I felt," Beltran said after the Cardinals won Game 2. "When I woke up, I woke up feeling a little better. And I came to the ballpark, talked to the trainer. I was able to get treatment and talk to the doctor, and find a way to try anything I could try just to go out there and feel no pain."

Beltran had an injection of Toradol to "block the pain for five hours or six hours."

Playing in the World Series for the first time as a 36-year-old, Beltran hinted that he wouldn't have played if it had been the regular season -- whether the decision be his or Mike Matheny's.

"Well, you know what, I would say that as a player, I'm always going to come to the ballpark to prepare myself to play the game," he said. "At the end of the day I believe that being in the regular season, that the manager is going to be more cautious and probably give me the day."

Beltran went 2-for-4 with an RBI in the game.