The St. Louis Cardinals (61-63) are coming off a series loss against the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend. The team fell to two games below .500 and is on the verge of being forgotten in the National League wildcard race. The team is five games behind the Atlanta Braves who currently hold the final spot in the postseason.
The team has the third toughest schedule based on strength of schedule for the rest of the season and this week is no different. The Cardinals will host the NL Central leading Milwaukee Brewers (72-52) at Busch Stadium for three games. The Brewers hold a commanding 11 game lead over the Cardinals and the rest of the division, however, an impressive series win from the Redbirds is paramount in getting them back in the postseason conversation.
Here are the probable pitching matchups for this week's crucial series in St. Louis.
The Cardinals will start Erick Fedde (8-6, 3.40 ERA) for the series opener on Tuesday. It hasn't been the best debut for Fedde since dawning the birds on the bat as he has recorded a 5.63 ERA across his first three starts with St. Louis. The plus side is that his best start came in his only outing at home at Busch Stadium where he allowed only one run across five innings against the Tampa Bay Rays. It was the only start of the three starts where he didn't allow a home run. The best way to keep Fedde in the zone? Keep the ball in the yard.
The Brewers will also go with a pitcher acquired at the MLB Trade Deadline Frankie Montas (5-8, 4.86 ERA). Montas was traded to Milwaukee from another division rival at the end of July from the Cincinnati Reds. He has seen better luck compared to Fedde with his new team, including five shutout innings in his last start against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Cardinals will start Kyle Gibson (7-5, 4.26 ERA) for the second game of the series. It was a start to forget the last time out for the veteran right hander as he allowed four home runs in the loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Gibson allowed seven runs (six earned) across 4.2 innings of work as he struggled at Great American Ballpark. He will look to get right after posting a 6.11 ERA across his last three starts.
The Brewers will go with Tobias Myers (6-5, 2.81 ERA) on Wednesday, he will be making his 19th start of the season. Myers has been a pleasant surprise for Milwaukee since making his MLB Debut this past April. He is on pace to have his best month in the Majors as he is currently posting a 1.50 ERA across his first three starts in August.
The Cardinals will start Mile Mikolas (8-10, 5.41 ERA) for the series finale against the Brewers. Mikolas is off to a dreadful month, earning a 9.22 ERA across his first three starts of August. He is coming off a loss against the Los Angeles Dodger where he allowed two home runs and five earned runs across 5.2 innings of work.
The Brewers will go with Freddy Peralta (8-7, 4.00 ERA) to finish the series at Busch Stadium. Peralta has had a few rough outings lately and will be looking to bounce back strong against a division rival. The 28 year old has allowed at least one home run in his last five starts.
Game Times, How to Watch
Game 1: 7:45 PM EST
Game 2: 7:45 PM EST
Game 3: 2:15 PM EST
The games will be available on Bally Sports Midwest as well as Bally Sports Wisconsin.
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