St. Louis @ Pittsburgh preview
PNC Park
Last Meeting ( Aug 28, 2011 ) Pittsburgh 4, St. Louis 7
THE STORY: St. Louis continues its 11th-hour playoff push when it travels to Pittsburgh on Monday evening for the opener of a three-game series. The Cardinals have won five in a row and 12 of their last 16 to climb back within six games of Milwaukee in the National League Central and 4 1/2 games of Atlanta in the wild-card race. St. Louis capped a three-game sweep of the Braves with a 6-3 win Sunday afternoon.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, Fox Sports (St. Louis), ROOT Sports (Pittsburgh)
PITCHING MATCHUPS: Cardinals RH Kyle Lohse (13-8, 3.59) vs. Pirates RH Brad Lincoln (1-2, 3.53).
Lohse is 5-1 over his last eight starts, with two of the wins coming against the Pirates. He pitched seven solid innings in an Aug. 17 victory at Pittsburgh (5 H, 2 ER, 7 K) and managed to come out on top 11 days later despite lasting just five innings (6 H, 4 R, 2 ER). Lohse is 7-3 with a 3.31 ERA in away games. He is 7-2 with a 3.51 ERA in 13 lifetime starts against the Pirates. Lincoln has pitched well since being added to the rotation in late August, but he is just 1-2 during that stretch despite turning in four consecutive quality starts with a 2.63 ERA. He scattered six hits over six shutout innings in winning at St. Louis on Aug. 27, striking out four and walking one. Previously, Lincoln had allowed five runs (three earned) in three innings of relief in two appearances against the Cardinals.
ABOUT THE PIRATES (66-80): Pittsburgh was in a three-way tie atop the NL Central on July 25 but faded into oblivion by losing 33 of 46 games. The Pirates have struggled offensively for much of the year, ranking near the bottom of the major leagues in runs (550, 27th), batting average (.243, 26th) and most other categories. Veteran first baseman Derrek Lee has played well when healthy, hitting .347 with four home runs in 23 games since being acquired in late July from the Orioles.
ABOUT THE CARDINALS (79-67): St. Louis — which led the division by a half-game on July 27 before Milwaukee used a red-hot August to pull ahead by as many as 10 1/2 — has crept back within range. As opposed to the Pirates, the Cardinals rank at or near the top of the National League in most offensive categories, with Albert Pujols (.297, 34 HRs, 89 RBIs) and Lance Berkman (.290, 30 HRs, 86 RBIs) leading the way.
FINAL PITCH: The Cardinals have grounded into 156 double plays, putting them on track to break their own National League record of 166 that was set in 1958. The major league record of 179 was set by the Boston Red Sox in 1990.