Cardinals at Brewers
The St. Louis Cardinals are quickly staking claim to one of the major leagues' top pitching staffs. One of the key reasons behind their hot start will be on the mound Saturday when Adam Wainwright faces the Brewers in the continuation of a three-game set in Milwaukee.
Wainwright (1.71) is one of eight Cardinals pitchers with an ERA below 2.00 this season. The team has given up two runs or less in eight of its last nine games, including Friday's 3-0 triumph in the series opener. Carlos Martinez logged seven strong innings for St. Louis, which carries a three-game winning streak into the weekend and has won eight of nine overall. Milwaukee (3-14) owns the worst record in the major leagues and hopes to avoid its ninth loss in 10 games.
TV: 7:10 p.m. ET, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Adam Wainwright (2-1, 1.71 ERA) vs. Brewers RH Wily Peralta (0-2, 5.68)
Wainwright has made three starts this season, the worst of which came against Milwaukee on April 13. He gave up five runs (three earned) in seven innings that day, but rebounded nicely with eight innings of one-run ball his last time out against Cincinnati. Aramis Ramirez is 23-for-63 (.365) with three home runs lifetime against Wainwright.
Peralta's last outing began with five scoreless innings before things unraveled for the Dominican right-hander, who ultimately gave up six runs over seven innings. The start before that came against St. Louis, which reached him for four runs and 10 hits over five frames. The Cardinals' collective roster has a .316 career average against Peralta, with Matt Holliday, Matt Carpenter and Jason Heyward all hitting at least .400.
WALK-OFFS
1. Nine of the Cardinals' 11 wins have come by three runs or less.
2. Carpenter is 11-for-24 against Peralta with a .536 on-base percentage.
3. Wainwright has 12 career wins against the Brewers - one shy of his high against any team (Houston Astros).