Cardinals at Giants
The
St. Louis Cardinals try to extend their winning streak to three games
Thursday afternoon when they take on the Giants in the finale of their
two-game series in San Francisco. St. Louis has been streaky of late,
following a three-game skid with four straight wins, then dropping
another four in a row before winning its last two contests.
The
Cardinals took the opener of the brief set with the Giants behind a
strong pitching performance from Jaime Garcia and a much-needed breakout
effort from David Freese. The third baseman was retired in the second
inning, running his drought to 0-for-17, before collecting three
straight hits, including a solo home run in the seventh inning that
snapped a 1-1 tie. San Francisco has lost two consecutive games after
winning its previous three.
TV: 3:45 p.m. ET, FS Midwest (St. Louis), CS Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Adam Wainwright (2-4, 6.16 ERA) vs. Giants RH Matt Cain (2-2, 2.28)
Wainwright
had his modest two-game winning streak snapped in his last outing as he
allowed five runs in 4 1/3 innings against Atlanta. The 30-year-old
lost his first three starts of the season but appeared to be getting on
track as he surrendered a total of six runs over his next three outings.
Wainwright has posted a 3.38 ERA in six career games - four starts -
against San Francisco but owns a 1-3 record.
Cain is hoping to
continue his impressive pace. After allowing five runs over six innings
in his season debut at Arizona on April 8, the veteran has yielded a
total of eight runs over his last six outings. Cain was much better in
his second start in the desert Saturday, limiting the Diamondbacks to
one run and three hits over six frames. He is 1-2 with a 4.29 ERA in six
career outings against St. Louis.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cardinals outfielder Carlos Beltran has missed three straight games with a sore knee.
2.
San Francisco outfielder Angel Pagan went 2-for-4 on Wednesday,
extending his hitting streak to seven games. Pagan has hit safely in 27
of his last 28 contests.
3. Giants left-hander Madison Bumgarner
had his eight-start winning streak at home snapped, losing at AT&T
Park for the first time since Aug. 4 against Philadelphia.