The Milwaukee Brewers will turn to reliable right-hander Colin Rea as they look to bounce back against the visiting St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night in the deciding game of a three-game series.
Rea (12-4, 3.70 ERA) will be opposed by right-hander Sonny Gray (12-9, 3.96).
The Cardinals evened the series with a 7-4 victory in 12 innings Tuesday night. Michael Siani singled home two go-ahead runs in the 12th off Elvis Peguero, recalled earlier in the day from Triple-A Nashville.
Paul Goldschmidt homered, doubled and singled and drove in three runs for St. Louis. Rookie Jackson Chourio had a homer and double for Milwaukee.
Milwaukee (81-58) remained 10 games up in the National League Central on the second-place Chicago Cubs, who lost to Pittsburgh 5-0. St. Louis (70-69) is a game behind the Cubs in the division and 5 1/2 games out of the final NL wild-card spot.
The Brewers are 1 1/2 games behind the Philadelphia Phillies for the second-best record in the NL and a postseason bye.
“I don’t think there’s any let-up in that room,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said after Tuesday’s game. “We didn’t swing the bat very well, comparatively. Some of that’s due to St. Louis’ pitching; some of it we didn’t have our best night.”
Rea has been the most consistent starter in a rotation beset all season by injuries. He is 3-1 with a 3.51 ERA in his past seven starts.
In his most recent start, he allowed four runs in four innings but did not get the decision in a 5-4, 10-inning win at Cincinnati on Friday.
Rea is 1-3 with a 4.35 ERA in eight career games (six starts) vs. St. Louis. He has faced the Cardinals once this season, tossing five scoreless innings in a 2-0 win at St. Louis in April without the decision.
The 20-year-old Chourio is batting .322 over his past 74 games, with 14 homers and 53 RBI. Willy Adames extended his hitting streak to a career-high 12 games with an 11th-inning RBI double Tuesday, giving him an NL-leading 100 RBIs. Adames is hitting .320 during his streak, with seven homers and 15 RBIs.
Gray will make his third start this season against Milwaukee. He lost both previous outings.
In his most recent start, Gray allowed one run in six innings in a 4-1 win over San Diego on Thursday to snap a season-high three-game losing streak.
“[Gray’s] our guy. He’s going to continue to be on the attack.” St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said afterward. “He’s just so prepared. You watch him day to day, you watch him prepare for his start, and it’s impressive. He knows what’s on the line, and he’s going to give us his best shot.”
Gray is 4-5 with a 3.31 ERA in 15 career starts vs. the Brewers.
Goldschmidt, who has doubled in six consecutive games, extended his hitting streak to a season-high 10 games. Over that span, he is hitting .513 (20-for-39) with two homers, eight doubles and nine RBI.
Lars Nootbaar also has been hot, batting .355 (11-for-31) over an eight-game hitting streak.
–Field Level Media
