Cincinnati @ St. Louis preview
Busch Stadium
Last Meeting ( Jul 4, 2011 ) Cincinnati 0, St. Louis 1
THE STORY: Good news is coming in bunches for the St. Louis Cardinals. They moved back into sole possession of first place with Monday’s 1-0 win over Cincinnati, and now comes word they could get slugger Albert Pujols back in the lineup much sooner than anticipated, possibly as early as Tuesday. Pujols, who broke his left wrist on June 19, took grounders before Monday’s game and is eligible to come off the DL Tuesday. Original estimates put Pujols’ return in early August.
TV: 7:09 p.m. ET, ESPN, FS-M, FS-O
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals LH Jaime Garcia (7-3, 3.33 ERA) vs. Reds RH Edinson Volquez (5-3, 5.65 ERA).
Garcia hasn’t gone deep in games lately, failing to pitch more than six innings in five of his last seven starts. However, he’s been untouchable at home. Garcia is 4-1 with a 0.88 ERA at Busch Stadium this season. Opposing batters aren’t crushing Volquez, hitting .259, but he’s been plagued by control problems (53 walks in 79 2/3 innings). He’s 1-2 with a 5.94 ERA is five career starts against St. Louis. Lance Berkman owns a .615 on-base percentage against Volquez in 13 at-bats.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS (46-40): Right fielder Jon Jay made two run-saving catches and raised his average to .303 in the series opener. In seven games since returning from a broken hand, third baseman David Freese is 8-for-24 (.333). Lance Berkman continues to lead the club in homers (22), RBIs (61) and slugging percentage (.606). However, the Cards have won just two of their last seven home games.
ABOUT THE REDS (43-43): Cincinnati entered the series as the highest-scoring NL team (405 runs) but managed to put just three runners in scoring position in Monday’s 1-0 loss to Chris Carpenter, who improved to 13-4 lifetime against the Reds. It was a bad way to start a critical seven-game road trip that includes two more in St. Louis and four games in Milwaukee. The Reds trail the Cards by three games and Milwaukee by two.
FINAL PITCH: Reds third baseman Scott Rolen, a former Cardinal, got his 2,000 career hit Monday. … Reds outfielder Jay Bruce ranks among the NL leaders with six assists. … Cincinnati leads the season series 4-3 thanks to a rousing home sweep in mid-May. … Cards reliever Eduardo Sanchez (shoulder inflammation) will begin a rehab assignment Thursday at Double-A Springfield.