The St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers will complete their four-game series on Sunday at Busch Stadium. The game will be featured on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball, and this game has huge playoff implications. The Los Angeles Dodgers hold a one-game lead over the St. Louis Cardinals for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.
Los Angeles has gone into St. Louis and won the first three games of this series to move past the Cardinals in the standings. The Dodgers are also in a tight battle with the Colorado Rockies for the National League West crown. The Cardinals are fading fast after a strong month of August that vaulted them into playoff contention. The St. Louis Cardinals are -105 over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday Night Baseball.
Wainwright Makes Start For Cardinals
Veteran pitcher Adam Wainwright will make the start for the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday night. Wainwright will be making just his sixth start of the season on Sunday and second since returning from a long DL stint. The right hander struggled in his previous outing, giving up seven hits and four earned runs in just five innings. Wainwright has made a ton of huge starts during his Cardinals career, and they are counting on him in a big way on Sunday.
Matt Carpenter has cooled off considerably for the Cardinals, but still is one of the most feared hitters in the National League. He has blasted 35 home runs this season for St. Louis, but carries just a .268 batting average. Rookie Patrick Wisdom blasted a grand slam in the loss on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals will need to score plenty of runs in support of Wainwright in this game.
Dodgers Offense Finally Clicking
The Los Angeles Dodgers have been scoring runs in bunches this week. Yasiel Puig blasted three long home runs in the blowout win on Saturday afternoon, and Manny Machado belted a home run as well. The Dodgers have one of the most feared offenses in baseball, and they are starting to get hot at the right time. Wainwright will have his hands full trying to cool off the Dodgers.
Young right-hander Ross Stripling will make the start for Los Angeles on Sunday night. Stripling has spent time as both a starter and a reliever this season but will be making his 19th start of the season in this game. He is 8-3 with a 2.61 earned run average in his second full season in the Major Leagues. Stripling just needs to have a solid outing and let the Dodgers offense win the game.
Cards Win, Tie Dodgers
Yaisel Puig has carried the Dodgers this weekend, and the Dodgers are looking for a huge four-game sweep. Stripling hopes to pitch well on Sunday night, but the Cardinals offense is due for a big game.
The St. Louis Cardinals have relied on Adam Wainwright to deliver in the past, and are doing it again on Sunday night. Look for Wainwright to turn back the clock and give them a solid outing in this game.
