Reds at Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals are riding high after a weekend sweep of their archrivals and try for their fourth five-game winning streak of the season when they host the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday in the opener of a three-game series. St. Louis (30-28) took three from the Chicago Cubs - two by 2-1 scores - after salvaging the finale of a three-game set at Philadelphia and sits third in the competitive National League Central, three games behind first-place Milwaukee.
“... Eventually, things had to turn in a positive way, for me and for the team. We knew the tough stretch couldn’t keep up,” Cardinals second baseman Kolten Wong (6-for-10 in Chicago series) told reporters about his club, which won only six of 24 games prior to its winning streak. Cincinnati (27-32) has lost three of its last four contests, falling 6 1/2 games behind Milwaukee, after dropping two of three to Washington over the weekend. Reds first baseman Joey Votto, who boasts a .342 average and 1.070 OPS against St. Louis since 2014, went 1-for-8 in the final two games of the Nationals series after going 13-for-22 in his previous five contests. Genesis Cabrera makes his second career start Tuesday after showing signs of excellence but losing his debut for the Cardinals and he opposes Cincinnati ace Luis Castillo, who wasn't sharp in his last two turns.
TV: 8:15 p.m. ET, FS Ohio (Cincinnati), FS Midwest (St. Louis)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Reds RH Luis Castillo (5-1, 2.45 ERA) vs. Cardinals LH Genesis Cabrera (0-1, 7.36)
Castillo received a no-decision after allowing three runs (two earned), six hits and four walks over 5 1/3 innings of Cincinnati's 8-5 loss to Pittsburgh on May 27. The 26-year-old Dominican is unbeaten in his last 10 starts (5-0) but has seen his ERA rise 0.69 over his past three turns. Matt Carpenter is 5-for-13 with a solo home run and three walks versus Castillo, who is 1-3 with a 3.67 ERA in six starts against the Cardinals.
Cabrera allowed five runs (three earned), five hits (one home run) and two walks while striking out five in 3 2/3 innings of an 11-4 loss at Philadelphia on Wednesday. The 22-year-old Dominican Republic native fashioned a 99 miles per hour fastball that helped him strike out the side in the second inning. Cabrera went 32-27 with a 3.87 ERA in 103 minor league games (81 starts), yielding 423 hits with 439 strikeouts in 476 2/3 innings.
WALK-OFFS
1. St. Louis 1B Paul Goldschmidt performs his best in June with a .328 average, 46 home runs, 150 RBIs and a 1.038 OPS during the month - all career highs.
2. Cincinnati RF Yasiel Puig is 9-for-25 with six home runs and 12 RBIs in his last six games at Busch Stadium.
3. The Cardinals have won three of five meetings this season after the Reds won the final three series in 2018.