The St. Louis Cardinals (50-65, 57-58 RL, 55-55-5 O/U) battle the Kansas City Royals (37-79, 47-70 RL, 54-60-2 O/U) in an interleague clash on Friday evening. The Cardinals will give the starting nod to Adam Wainwright. The Royals will likely be using the bullpen for this bout. The Royals lead the season series 2-0.
Adam Wainwright will get the nod to begin the series. Wainwright had a rough outing this past weekend, squandering seven runs in just three innings against the Rockies, and was charged with the loss. The veteran has enjoyed an illustrious career but has struggled this season. The righty has poor numbers, issuing a 7.81 ERA and a 1.98 WHIP accompanied by a 3-6 record in 65.2 innings pitched. Wainwright allowed three runs in five innings against the Royals earlier this season and has a strong 3.70 ERA and a 7-4 record in 97.1 career innings.
The Cardinals have not been able to find any sort of grove, dropping three consecutive series including a series loss to the Rockies, and dropped one of the opening two games against the Rays prior to this series entering Thursday night. They are 4-6 in their last te n games.
LARS
(and we cannot stress this enough)
NOOTBAAR! #STLCards pic.twitter.com/lcfqj5qTR4
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 10, 2023
Nolan Gorman has been one of the Cardinals' best hitters this season. The 23-year-old has recorded a stellar .888 OPS this month and proved himself as an elite hitter, clubbing 24 homers with 67 RBIs and a strong .825 OPS. He has been quiet against the Royals, going 0 for 6.
The Cardinals are scoring an average of 4.62 runs per game, ranking them 12th. The pitching has been the issue this season, posting a 4.55 team ERA, placing them 23rd.