Cardinals at Giants
The San Francisco Giants have had a revolving door in the outfield all season, but they may have found a few keepers in Alex Dickerson and Austin Slater. The promising duo ranks as one of the few bright spots for the last-place Giants, who host the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday for the rubber match of their three-game series.
Pablo Sandoval homered and drove in three runs, Dickerson added an RBI double and Slater delivered a pinch-hit grand slam in Saturday’s 8-4 victory as the Giants won for the sixth time in eight games. San Francisco received a scare when ace Madison Bumgarner left the contest in the third inning with a left elbow contusion, but X-rays were negative and he should be available following the All-Star break. St. Louis fell to 4-4 on its nine-game road trip despite the efforts of Paul Goldschmidt, who went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs. Goldschmidt has gone deep in back-to-back games and owns a .328 batting average with 13 homers and 54 RBIs in 70 career contests at Oracle Park.
TV: 4:05 p.m. ET, FS Midwest (St. Louis), NBCS Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Jack Flaherty (4-5, 4.90 ERA) vs. Giants RH Jeff Samardzija (5-7, 4.32)
Flaherty yielded four runs on seven hits and four walks over 4 2/3 innings in a no-decision against Seattle on Tuesday. The 23-year-old native of Los Angeles has gone 0-2 with a 7.12 ERA and 11 home runs allowed over 30 1/3 frames in his last six turns. A first-round draft pick of the Cardinals in 2014, Flaherty owns an 11.37 ERA in two career starts versus San Francisco.
Samardzija turned in his best outing of the season on Monday, allowing two runs over eight innings in a victory over San Diego. The 34-year-old native of Indiana posted a 5.93 ERA in five starts last month but opened July on a strong note, becoming the first Giants pitcher to complete eight frames this season. Yadier Molina is 12-for-28 against Samardzija, who is 4-5 with a 3.77 ERA in 24 career games (13 starts) versus St. Louis.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Giants have collected 52 runs and 71 hits over their last six games.
2. St. Louis 2B Kolten Wong exited Saturday’s game due to left calf tightness and is listed as day-to-day.
3. San Francisco OF Kevin Pillar is 12-for-26 with 10 RBIs over his last six contests.