The Cardinals gun for a four-game sweep of the Dodgers when they send right-hander Kyle Lohse (4-6, 4.35 ERA) to the Busch Stadium mound against Hiroki Kuroda (3-5, 4.57) and the Dodgers.
St. Louis continued its dominance of Los Angeles with a 3-2, 15-inning victory Wednesday, coming from behind in both the bottom of the ninth and 11th innings to tie the game then winning it on Albert Pujols’ two-out RBI single in the 15th. Not only have the Cardinals taken the first two games of this series by a combined score of 19-3, but they’re now 44-20 in its last 64 meetings with Los Angeles and 27-8 in its last 35 clashes against the Dodgers at Busch. The Redbirds are on additional positive surges of 7-1 at home, 7-1 against the N.L. West, 18-4 against teams with a winning percentage above .600 and 14-2 on Thursday.
L.A. has now lost four in a row for the first time all season and five of its last six. Joe Torre’s squad is also on slides of 1-5 against right-handed starters and 1-5 as an underdog
St. Louis has lost four in a row and eight of nine behind Lohse, including Saturday’s ugly 14-6 setback at Philadelphia, in which the veteran allowed three runs on four hits and three walks in just four innings. It was Lohse’s third start since a stint on the disabled list, and he hasn’t pitched the Cards to a win since May 23.
Lohse is 4-3 with a 3.20 ERA in seven home starts this year, and he’s 1-2 with a 4.95 ERA in five career appearances (three starts) against Los Angeles. Additionally, the Cardinals are 13-6 in Lohse’s last 19 home starts, but they’ve lost six straight games when the 30-year-old has faced a winning opponent.
The Dodgers have come out on top in Kuroda’s last two starts and four of his last six. On Saturday against Florida, he allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits in six innings, with nine strikeouts against just one walk, getting a no-decision in L.A.’s 4-3 walk-off home victory. Kuroda is 3-2 with a 4.99 ERA in six road appearances (five starts) this season, and this will be his first career start against St. Louis.
L.A. is 5-0 in Kuroda’s last five outings against N.L. Central squads, but it has dropped five straight road games against winning teams behind the right-hander.
The Dodgers are on “over” runs of 5-3-1 overall, 10-4 on the road and 12-7 against right-handed starters, but with Kuroda throwing, the under is on streaks of 8-3 overall, 5-0 against winning teams and 14-6-1 on the highway. The Cardinals are on “under” streaks of 10-4 overall, 21-9 at home (7-1 in their last eight at Busch) and 6-1 against the N.L. West. Finally, the under has been the play in eight of the last 12 meetings in this rivalry.
ATS ADVANTAGE: ST. LOUIS and UNDER
AMERICAN LEAGUE
N.Y. Yankees (62-39) at Chicago White Sox (51-51)
The streaking Yankees give the ball to southpaw Andy Pettitte (8-6, 4.67 ERA) to open a four-game weekend set against the White Sox, who will counter with right-hander Gavin Floyd (8-6, 4.24) at US Cellular Field.
New York finished off a three-game set at Tampa Bay on Wednesday with a 6-2 victory, getting eight shutout innings from starter Joba Chamberlain. The Yanks are on hot streaks of 11-2 since the All-Star break, 47-22 overall, 10-4 on the road and 16-2 against right-handed starters, and they’ve also won 16 of their last 21 series openers.
Chicago returns home after concluding a seven-game road trip to Detroit and Minnesota, going 1-6 in that stretch, capped by Wednesday’s 3-2 loss. Despite the rough road trip, the Sox are on upswings of 10-3 against lefty starters and 9-3 at home.
This marks the first series of the season between these clubs. New York has owned this rivalry lately, going 10-3 in the last 13 clashes overall and 5-1 in the last six meetings in Chicago, but the Bronx Bombers are just 1-4 in Pettitte’s last five starts against the White Sox in the Windy City.
The Yankees have followed up a three-game win streak behind Pettitte with losses in three of his last four starts. On Saturday against Oakland, the left-hander allowed four runs on five hits and a walk in 6 1/3 innings of a 6-4 home loss. Over his last four starts, Pettitte has twice allowed six runs, and he’s 0-3 with a 6.37 ERA in that stretch.
Pettitte is 4-2 with a 3.69 ERA in eight road starts this year, and he’s 11-9 with a 4.48 ERA in 22 career starts against Chicago. With the veteran on the hill, the Yanks are on runs of 5-0 in series openers, 4-1 on the road and 20-7 against the A.L. Central
The Sox are 7-3 in Floyd’s last 10 starts, but they were dealt a tough 4-3 setback at Detroit on Saturday, blowing a 3-2 ninth-inning lead. The 26-year-old right-hander allowed just two runs (one earned) on six hits and three walks over 6 2/3 innings in getting a no-decision. Floyd is 4-2 with a 2.70 ERA in nine home starts this season, and he’s 1-0 despite a bloated 6.75 ERA in three career appearances (two starts) against New York. Behind Floyd, Chicago is on runs of 22-6 at home and 4-0 at home against winning teams.
The under is 9-3-1 in New York’s last 13 games, and with Pettitte pitching, the under is on tears of 37-16-1 overall, 16-5 in series openers, 19-7 on the highway and 8-3 against winning teams. Likewise, Chicago has stayed under the total in 11 straight games overall and four straight against A.L. East foes, and the under is also on stretches for the Pale Hose of 19-7-1 in series openers, 37-16 at U.S. Cellular (4-0 last four) and 5-1 with Floyd starting at home.
Conversely, in this rivalry, the total has gone high in the last four meetings in Chicago, and with Pettitte facing the Sox, the over is on runs of 5-2 overall and 4-0 in the Windy City.
Inside the lines 7/30
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