The St. Louis Cardinals (88-63, 83-68 RL, 71-75–5 O/U) take on the Los Angeles Dodgers (104-46, 91-59 RL, 63-74-13 O/U) in the second of a three-game NL series on Saturday night. The Cardinals will have Jordan Montgomery on the hill. The Dodgers will reply with Clayton Kershaw, eying his third consecutive win. The Dodgers lead the season series 2-1.
Jordan Montgomery will take the mound on Saturday. Montgomery was decent in his previous start, conceding three runs on seven hits in 5.1 innings against the Reds, and was hit with his third loss of the month. The veteran southpaw is consistently shutting down opponents since arriving at the Cardinals and is sporting a 3.26 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP accompanied by an 8-5 record in 168.1 innings pitched. Montgomery has spent his entire career with the Yankees and has yet to pitch against the Dodgers as a result.
The Cardinals have been slipping a bit recently, losing three out of their last four games entering Friday after a series loss in San Diego. The squad avoided the sweep with a 5-4 win on Thursday. They have all but clinched the NL Central, holding an eight-game lead ahead of Milwaukee.
Nolan Arenado was pro ductive in the first series against the Dodgers, going 4 for 10 with three RBIs. The 31-year-old slugger has great numbers, clubbing 29 big flies with 98 RBIs and a .900 OPS. Arenado hasn’t been quite as dangerous this month where he has posted a weak .623 OPS
The Cardinals' potent offense is averaging 4.75 runs, good for fourth overall. The pitching staff has recorded a 3.77 team ERA, placing them ninth in the big leagues.