Cardinals at Brewers
The World Series champion Cardinals won their season opener against Miami and will try to continue their momentum against the Brewers, who they defeated 4-2 in the NL Championship Series last season. Former manager Tony La Russa retired in the offseason and Albert Pujols signed with the Angels in free agency, leaving St. Louis without two of its most recognizable faces. Still, there’s plenty of talent left over from last year’s team, which finished 90-72 en route to its second championship since 2006. Milwaukee, which won the NL Central in 2011, also lost a star to free agency when Prince Fielder signed with Detroit. Fielder hit 38 home runs and 120 RBI last year. The Brewers’ biggest offseason signing was Aramis Ramirez, a 33-year-old third baseman who hit 26 home runs and 93 RBI with the Cubs.
St. Louis won 23 of its final 31 games last year before breezing through the playoffs. The Cardinals went 4-5 at Miller Park, but were the only team in the league to sweep the Brewers at their home stadium. Milwaukee ace Yovani Gallardo has struggled historically against the Cardinals, posting a 1-7 record and 5.66 ERA in 11 outings.
TV: 4:10 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Midwest (St. Louis), FSN (Milwaukee)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals LH Jaime Garcia (2011: 13-7, ERA 3.56) vs. Brewers RH Yovani Gallardo (2011: 17-10, ERA 3.52)
The Cardinals will depend on Garcia as Adam Wainwright returns from a right elbow injury that kept him out all of last season and Chris Carpenter tries to recover from a bulging disk in his neck. Last year, Garcia allowed two earned runs or less in 19 of his 32 starts. However, the left-hander rarely made it through the seventh inning, and the Cardinals will need him to pitch deeper into games this season. Garcia is 3-2 with a 3.27 ERA in seven career starts against the Brewers.
Gallardo had career highs in wins (17), strikeouts (207) and ERA (3.52) last season for the Brewers, who went 20-13 in games he started. While his numbers were strong, his early-season performance wasn’t. Gallardo had a 5.70 ERA through the first month last season and gave up four or more runs in four of his first six starts overall.
WALK-OFFS
1. Milwaukee went 57-24 at Miller Park in 2011, the best home record of any team in the league.
2. The two teams split the regular season series last year at 9 apiece.
3. St. Louis led the NL in runs scored with 762.