St. Louis Cardinals v Los Angeles Dodgers mlb live stream baseball audio video feed webcast esph 360 gamecast major league opener 4/14, 2011. Game Review: The St. Louis Cardinals are on a tear at the plate, but Jaime Garcia hasn't needed that kind of help.
Hiroki Kuroda and the Los Angeles Dodgers aren't likely to cooperate, either.
St. Louis (5-7) has won three of four while compiling a .356 batting average with 15 doubles, nine homers and 37 runs. Over the first eight games, the Cardinals hit .216 with seven doubles, and three homers while being held to fewer than four runs in all but one contest.
10:10 PM ET, April 14, 2011
Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
Pitching Matchup
St. Louis v Los Angeles
Jaime Garcia
1-0, 0.60 ERA
Last appearance:
4/09 at SF
6.0 IP, 1 ER
Dec = ND
Hiroki Kuroda
2-0, 1.72 ERA
Last appearance:
4/09 at SD
8.2 IP, 0 ER
Dec = Win
Injury Report
St. Louis
* Brian Tallet RP - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Bryan Augenstein SP - Apr 13: 15-Day DL
* Matt Holliday LF - Apr 10: Day-To-Day
Los Angeles
* Carlos Monasterios RP - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Jay Gibbons LF - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Casey Blake 3B - Apr 13: Day-To-Day
* Rafael Furcal SS - Apr 12: 15-Day DL
* Jon Garland SP - Apr 12: 15-Day DL
* Hector Gimenez C - Apr 10: 15-Day DL
Their surge continued Wednesday after collecting season highs with 18 hits, including eight doubles, and in scoring en route to a 15-5 romp over Arizona for their first series win this season.
"We're not going to score 15 runs every night but we were swinging the bats like we were capable of," said right fielder Lance Berkman, who's had four homers among six hits with 10 RBIs over the last three games. "We have the potential to have an explosive offense."
Garcia (1-0, 0.60 ERA) has been so good that he hasn't needed much support through two starts. He's struck out 18 in 15 innings while being backed by just two runs in each game.
The left-hander turned in another impressive performance Saturday at San Francisco, allowing one run and four hits with nine strikeouts in six innings. Closer Ryan Franklin allowed two runs in the ninth for a 3-2 loss.
"It's just a matter of trying to worry about the things you're supposed to worry about when you're pitching, which are getting ahead and keeping the ball down," Garcia told Cardinals' official website. "When you do those things, strikeouts are going to come."
Garcia's outstanding pitching comes after he went 4-2 with a 1.14 ERA though his first nine starts of 2010. He finished 13-8 with a 2.70 ERA, but struggled in his only appearance against the Dodgers. Garcia threw 82 pitches over 3 1/3 innings, allowing two runs and eight hits in the Cardinals' 8-4 win on July 16.
St. Louis also has to be pleased by Albert Pujols' sudden spike in production. The three-time NL MVP broke out of an early slump by going 5 for 8 with two RBIs over the last two games. He was 6 for 40 with one homer and four RBIs through the first 10 contests.
Pujols, though, has a .170 average with one homer and five RBIs over his last 13 games at Dodger Stadium, and has gone 1 for 9 with three strikeouts against Kuroda (2-0, 1.72).
The right-hander is off to his best start in four seasons in the majors, and he threw a gem in a 4-0 win at San Diego on Saturday, scattering six hits in 8 2/3 innings.
The Dodgers, however, have dropped three of four since, falling 4-3 at San Francisco on Wednesday.
Kuroda has a 1.42 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 19 innings over three starts against the Cardinals, but is 0-1 while getting just three total runs of support and none over the last two contests.
Andre Ethier is providing some offensive punch for the Dodgers, hitting .421 with one homer and seven RBIs during a 10-game hitting streak. It's the right fielder's longest since putting together a career-high 16-game run as a rookie from July 26-Aug. 12, 2006.
Ethier has a .447 average with seven doubles, one triple, one homer and five RBIs in his past 12 home meetings with St. Louis.
Hiroki Kuroda and the Los Angeles Dodgers aren't likely to cooperate, either.
CardinalsThe Cardinals look for another big offensive effort when Garcia takes the mound opposite Kuroda in the opener of a four-game set with the Dodgers on Thursday night in Los Angeles.
(5-7, 3-3 away)
Dodgers
(6-6, 3-1 home)
St. Louis (5-7) has won three of four while compiling a .356 batting average with 15 doubles, nine homers and 37 runs. Over the first eight games, the Cardinals hit .216 with seven doubles, and three homers while being held to fewer than four runs in all but one contest.
10:10 PM ET, April 14, 2011
Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California
St. Louis v Los Angeles
Jaime Garcia
1-0, 0.60 ERA
Last appearance:
4/09 at SF
6.0 IP, 1 ER
Dec = ND
Hiroki Kuroda
2-0, 1.72 ERA
Last appearance:
4/09 at SD
8.2 IP, 0 ER
Dec = Win
Injury Report
St. Louis
* Brian Tallet RP - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Bryan Augenstein SP - Apr 13: 15-Day DL
* Matt Holliday LF - Apr 10: Day-To-Day
Los Angeles
* Carlos Monasterios RP - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Jay Gibbons LF - Apr 14: 15-Day DL
* Casey Blake 3B - Apr 13: Day-To-Day
* Rafael Furcal SS - Apr 12: 15-Day DL
* Jon Garland SP - Apr 12: 15-Day DL
* Hector Gimenez C - Apr 10: 15-Day DL
Their surge continued Wednesday after collecting season highs with 18 hits, including eight doubles, and in scoring en route to a 15-5 romp over Arizona for their first series win this season.
"We're not going to score 15 runs every night but we were swinging the bats like we were capable of," said right fielder Lance Berkman, who's had four homers among six hits with 10 RBIs over the last three games. "We have the potential to have an explosive offense."
Garcia (1-0, 0.60 ERA) has been so good that he hasn't needed much support through two starts. He's struck out 18 in 15 innings while being backed by just two runs in each game.
The left-hander turned in another impressive performance Saturday at San Francisco, allowing one run and four hits with nine strikeouts in six innings. Closer Ryan Franklin allowed two runs in the ninth for a 3-2 loss.
"It's just a matter of trying to worry about the things you're supposed to worry about when you're pitching, which are getting ahead and keeping the ball down," Garcia told Cardinals' official website. "When you do those things, strikeouts are going to come."
Garcia's outstanding pitching comes after he went 4-2 with a 1.14 ERA though his first nine starts of 2010. He finished 13-8 with a 2.70 ERA, but struggled in his only appearance against the Dodgers. Garcia threw 82 pitches over 3 1/3 innings, allowing two runs and eight hits in the Cardinals' 8-4 win on July 16.
St. Louis also has to be pleased by Albert Pujols' sudden spike in production. The three-time NL MVP broke out of an early slump by going 5 for 8 with two RBIs over the last two games. He was 6 for 40 with one homer and four RBIs through the first 10 contests.
Pujols, though, has a .170 average with one homer and five RBIs over his last 13 games at Dodger Stadium, and has gone 1 for 9 with three strikeouts against Kuroda (2-0, 1.72).
The right-hander is off to his best start in four seasons in the majors, and he threw a gem in a 4-0 win at San Diego on Saturday, scattering six hits in 8 2/3 innings.
The Dodgers, however, have dropped three of four since, falling 4-3 at San Francisco on Wednesday.
Kuroda has a 1.42 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 19 innings over three starts against the Cardinals, but is 0-1 while getting just three total runs of support and none over the last two contests.
Andre Ethier is providing some offensive punch for the Dodgers, hitting .421 with one homer and seven RBIs during a 10-game hitting streak. It's the right fielder's longest since putting together a career-high 16-game run as a rookie from July 26-Aug. 12, 2006.
Ethier has a .447 average with seven doubles, one triple, one homer and five RBIs in his past 12 home meetings with St. Louis.
