Cardinals at Royals
The St. Louis Cardinals have a chance to move above the .500 mark for the first time since June 1 when they resume their four-game, home-and-home series at the Kansas City Royals on Tuesday night. The Cardinals have won three in a row following Monday's 11-3 victory and are 4-3 heading into the finale of their eight-game road trip.
Matt Carpenter swatted a three-run homer to cap a six-run fourth inning that broke open Monday's game and boosted his career numbers against Kansas City to five homers and 17 RBIs with a .365 batting average in 22 games. Kolten Wong also homered and drove in four runs for St. Louis, which has amassed 28 runs over the past three games to remain 3 1/2 games behind the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central. Kansas City has lost seven of 10 following its nine-game winning streak, dropping three games behind first-place Cleveland in the American League Central and falling into a tie with Tampa Bay for the second wild card. Royals left-hander Jason Vargas can match his career high in victories when he goes for his 14th win before the series moves across Interstate 70 for two games in St. Louis.
TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, FS1, FSN Midwest (St. Louis)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Michael Wacha (8-4, 3.66 ERA) vs. Royals LH Jason Vargas (13-5, 3.10)
Wacha lasted only four innings after he was pulled for a pinch hitter in his last start at Milwaukee, giving up one run on five hits while not factoring in the decision. He was 5-1 over his previous six starts, permitting two runs or fewer in each of the victories, and has lost only once since the beginning of June. Wacha owns a 2-1 record and 2.42 ERA in four starts versus Kansas City.
Vargas was 12-3 with a 2.22 ERA after winning his seventh consecutive start on June 30, a superb stretch in which he surrendered a combined 11 runs en route to earning an All-Star berth. He has wobbled a bit since, winning once and failing to pitch beyond five innings in four of his last five starts. Carpenter is 4-for-4 against Vargas, who is 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA lifetime versus St. Louis.
WALK-OFFS
1. Royals 3B Mike Moustakas hit his 32nd homer in the series opener, leaving him four shy of Steve Balboni's single-season club record.
2. Cardinals CF Dexter Fowler tripled in his return from the disabled list while OF Stephen Piscotty was demoted to Triple-A Memphis.
3. Royals C Salvador Perez (strained intercostal muscle) said he hopes to return shortly after his 10-day stint on the disabled list ends.