Indians at Cardinals
St. Louis Cardinals pitchers have been hard to hit for the past four games, and that hasn’t included their ace. Standout right-hander Carlos Martinez will try to follow suit when he takes the mound Tuesday against Cleveland ace Corey Kluber for the second contest of a three-game series against the visiting Indians.
St. Louis pitchers have tossed 19 consecutive scoreless innings at home after blanking Cleveland 4-0 in the series opener. The Cardinals have won three straight and have allowed a total of six runs in their past four contests, but they need Martinez to return to the dominant form he showed before landing on the disabled list in May. The four runs allowed Monday marked the most for the Indians since June 16, as they had given up only nine runs during a seven-game winning streak. Cleveland is 7 1/2 games ahead of second-place Minnesota in the American League Central but has dropped three of its last four on the road.
TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland), FS Midwest (St. Louis)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Indians RH Corey Kluber (11-3, 2.10 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Carlos Martinez (3-4, 3.24)
Kluber, who is tied for the major league lead in victories, has recorded a quality start in 15 of his 16 outings this season and has allowed two or fewer earned runs in seven of his last eight. The 32-year-old was dominant Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox, striking out seven and allowing one hit over seven scoreless innings. In his only previous start against the Cardinals, Kluber struck out 18 over eight innings of one-hit ball in a 2015 triumph.
Martinez hasn’t been himself since returning from a month on the disabled list with a lat strain. The 26-year-old has pitched to an 8.10 ERA in four starts since his return, and he was tagged for seven runs (five earned) over four innings in a loss at Milwaukee on Thursday. Martinez is 4-4 with a 1.97 ERA in 16 games (12 starts) against American League opponents.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cleveland 3B Jose Ramirez has reached base in 32 consecutive games and is 8-for-29 during a seven-game road hitting streak.
2. St. Louis OF Marcell Ozuna has multiple hits in three straight interleague games.
3. Cardinals INF Matt Carpenter has five three-hit games this season and three have come in interleague play.