Cardinals open definining set against Pirates
Thursday’s Cardinals-Reds series finale ended in the most controversial way possible. Is the Gateway City in for additional drama this evening?
Fresh off a critical 4-3 triumph, the host squad welcomes Pittsburgh to town at 8:15 p.m. ET. Online sports book Bovada.lv gives the Redbirds odds of -200 to prevail. The Pirates, on the other hand, enter Busch Stadium as +170 underdogs.
About 12 hours ago, Yadier Molina capped the Cards’ 83rd win on the season with a two-out RBI double in the bottom of the ninth inning. Yet the ball caromed off signage beyond the left-field wall, meaning it should have been ruled a ground-rule double. Nonetheless, Mike Matheny’s troops managed to stay a game behind San Francisco for the National League’s second wild-card spot.
Burgeoning ace Carlos Martinez will accept this evening’s assignment. Coming off a 3-1 loss to the Cubs over the weekend, the righty holds a 3-5 record with a 4.01 ERA in 17 career outings vs. the Buccos. He’ll face them for the fourth time in 2016.
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Clint Hurdle responds by deploying Tyler Glasnow. The rookie dropped a 5-1 decision to St. Louis on July 7, working 5 1/3 frames. Most recently, Washington tagged him for four runs on seven hits.
Martinez has represented a bulldog all year – even when the Cardinals have failed to offer him adequate run support. On the flip side, Pittsburgh desperately wants to guard against its 21st losing campaign in the past 24 years. Expect a tightly contested, low-scoring opener.
FRIDAY MLB FREE PICK: PIRATES/CARDINALS UNDER 7.5 RUNS