Houston Astros vs St. Louis Cardinals mlb authentic live streaming link with review and radio commentry highquality May 19, 2011. Injuries to their top two RBI men could threaten the St. Louis Cardinals' latest winning streak.
The Cardinals could be without Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman on Thursday when they try to complete a 4-0 homestand with a two-game sweep of the Houston Astros.
1:45 PM ET, May 19, 2011
Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri
Holliday, batting .357 with 28 RBIs, left after two innings with a tight left quadriceps. Hitting .349 with 35 RBIs, Berkman was removed as a precaution with tightness in his right wrist not long after diving for a ball in right field.
"Holliday gave me a nod, which makes me think that he'll be back soon," said manager Tony La Russa, who added that his cleanup hitter might not play in the series finale.
Berkman is more optimistic he can go.
"I didn't want to get jerked out of the game," said Berkman, 8 for 15 with two homers and seven RBIs against his former Houston teammates this season. "(Thursday) morning will be a good test to see how it feels."
The Cardinals could be without their entire starting outfield if center fielder Colby Rasmus (abdomen) is unable to start for a fifth consecutive game. Rasmus did pinch-hit Wednesday.
Fill-in John Jay and rookie Pete Kozma helped pick up the slack for the Cardinals.Jay had two RBIs on Wednesday and Kozma added an RBI double in his first career at-bat.
Starting in place of Rasmus, Jay has batted .458 with a homer and nine RBIs his last eight games. He's batting .333 in 14 career games against Houston.
St. Louis might not need its most potent lineup if it continues to get excellent pitching. The Cardinals have allowed one run in each of the last three games.
Probable starter Kyle McClellan (5-1, 3.62 ERA) looks to bounce back after allowing four runs and three homers Saturday in six innings of a 7-3 loss to Cincinnati.
McClellan also hopes to improve on his only previous start against Houston. He gave up a season-high five runs in 5 2/3 innings of an 11-7 win at Minute Maid Park on April 28.
Hunter Pence is 6 for 13 against McClellan but 3 for 25 with eight strikeouts his last six games for the Astros (15-28), who will try to avoid a fifth consecutive loss.
Houston has totaled four runs and 18 hits its last three games.
J.A. Happ (3-4, 5.40) looks to help end the skid and earn his third consecutive win. The left-hander allowed two runs in six innings of a 7-3 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday to improve to 2-0 with a 3.93 ERA in three starts this month.
"He's got his breaking ball down, then he got some outs up in the zone. You change the eye level, you can be effective," Mets manager Terry Collins told the Astros' official website.
Happ surrendered a pair of solo homers in five innings to take the loss in a 6-5 defeat to the Cardinals on April 27. He was worse in his only career start at Busch Stadium, getting charged with seven runs in one inning of an 8-4 loss Aug. 4.
The Cardinals could be without Matt Holliday and Lance Berkman on Thursday when they try to complete a 4-0 homestand with a two-game sweep of the Houston Astros.
1:45 PM ET, May 19, 2011
Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri
Preview: Astros at CardinalsAfter being swept in Cincinnati, St. Louis (25-19) returned home to beat Philadelphia twice and Houston 5-1 on Wednesday. The Cardinals, however, finished Wednesday's game without Holliday and Berkman.
Current Conditions - St. Louis
L/RAIN 64 °F
Wind: ESE 9
5-Day Forecast
GAME: Houston Astros (15-28) at St. Louis Cardinals (25-19)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, May 19 - 1:45 PM EST
WHERE: Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri
LINE: N/A TOTAL: N/A
Holliday, batting .357 with 28 RBIs, left after two innings with a tight left quadriceps. Hitting .349 with 35 RBIs, Berkman was removed as a precaution with tightness in his right wrist not long after diving for a ball in right field.
"Holliday gave me a nod, which makes me think that he'll be back soon," said manager Tony La Russa, who added that his cleanup hitter might not play in the series finale.
Berkman is more optimistic he can go.
"I didn't want to get jerked out of the game," said Berkman, 8 for 15 with two homers and seven RBIs against his former Houston teammates this season. "(Thursday) morning will be a good test to see how it feels."
The Cardinals could be without their entire starting outfield if center fielder Colby Rasmus (abdomen) is unable to start for a fifth consecutive game. Rasmus did pinch-hit Wednesday.
Fill-in John Jay and rookie Pete Kozma helped pick up the slack for the Cardinals.Jay had two RBIs on Wednesday and Kozma added an RBI double in his first career at-bat.
Starting in place of Rasmus, Jay has batted .458 with a homer and nine RBIs his last eight games. He's batting .333 in 14 career games against Houston.
St. Louis might not need its most potent lineup if it continues to get excellent pitching. The Cardinals have allowed one run in each of the last three games.
Probable starter Kyle McClellan (5-1, 3.62 ERA) looks to bounce back after allowing four runs and three homers Saturday in six innings of a 7-3 loss to Cincinnati.
McClellan also hopes to improve on his only previous start against Houston. He gave up a season-high five runs in 5 2/3 innings of an 11-7 win at Minute Maid Park on April 28.
Hunter Pence is 6 for 13 against McClellan but 3 for 25 with eight strikeouts his last six games for the Astros (15-28), who will try to avoid a fifth consecutive loss.
Houston has totaled four runs and 18 hits its last three games.
J.A. Happ (3-4, 5.40) looks to help end the skid and earn his third consecutive win. The left-hander allowed two runs in six innings of a 7-3 victory over the New York Mets on Saturday to improve to 2-0 with a 3.93 ERA in three starts this month.
"He's got his breaking ball down, then he got some outs up in the zone. You change the eye level, you can be effective," Mets manager Terry Collins told the Astros' official website.
Happ surrendered a pair of solo homers in five innings to take the loss in a 6-5 defeat to the Cardinals on April 27. He was worse in his only career start at Busch Stadium, getting charged with seven runs in one inning of an 8-4 loss Aug. 4.
