St. Louis @ Milwaukee preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 16, 2012 ) St. Louis 3, Milwaukee 2

Matt Holliday is doing all he can to keep the St. Louis Cardinals in contention in the National League Central. The 32-year-old left fielder is hitting .390 during a 15-game hitting streak after going 2-for-5 with two RBIs to spark St. Louis’ ninth-inning rally Monday. He has 12 RBIs during the streak and is one of the few Cardinals hitting with runners in scoring position. Holliday's surge has helped compensate for Carlos Beltran's 7-for-41 slump.

St. Louis, which got its first win of the second half Monday to pull within 3½ games of the division lead, is on a run against Milwaukee, having beaten the Brewers five of seven times this season and 11 of the last 14. On Monday, St. Louis overcame a 435-foot homer by first baseman Corey Hart, who has a 10-game hitting streak. Despite the 3-2 loss, Milwaukee has won eight of its last 13 overall.

TV: 8:10 p.m. ET, FS Midwest (St. Louis), FS Wisconsin (Milwaukee)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Joe Kelly (1-1, 2.70 ERA) vs. Brewers LH Randy Wolf (2-6, 5.80)

The rookie Kelly has allowed two or fewer earned runs in five of his six starts. But batters are hitting .273 against him, and he has a high WHIP of 1.44. Kelly, who does a great job of stranding runners, has gone six innings in each of his last four starts.

Wolf was used in relief July 7 against the Astros, allowing one run in two innings. The Brewers have dropped his last three starts, with Wolf yielding 17 earned runs in 16 1/3 innings. Batters are hitting .306 against him this year. In 20 career starts against St. Louis, Wolf is 8-9 with a 3.97 ERA.

WALK-OFFS

1. St. Louis is 15-24 in games decided by one or two runs.

2. The Brewers announced Zack Greinke (fatigue) will be skipped in his scheduled Wednesday start and won’t pitch until July 24 at Philadelphia.

3. Milwaukee closer John Axford has blown six of 22 save chances after Monday’s ninth-inning implosion. He was booed lustily after being yanked.