St. Louis took the opener 6-4 behind a 4-run first inning, dropped the middle game, and now gets the ball in Michael McGreevy's hand for the rubber game. The Cardinals are 24-18 and have been one of the best road teams in baseball this year — they've quietly built that record without their lineup ever really getting whole.
McGreevy is the story here. A 2.18 ERA through his first handful of starts is genuinely excellent, even if Statcast keeps yelling that his expected numbers (north of 6.00 xERA) say he's living on borrowed time. Whatever — the runs on the board are what count, and he's been carving guys up the first time through the order all season.
Jacob Lopez is the other side of that coin. The lefty is sitting on a 6.11 ERA, has walked at least 3 hitters in nearly every start, and has publicly admitted that once he gets past 65 pitches the strike zone starts to drift on him. The A's are 2-1 in his starts only because the offense keeps bailing him out. That's not a sustainable plan when you're staring down a Cardinals lineup that just hung 6 on you two days ago.
The market doesn't love either side outright — it's basically a pick'em on the moneyline at Pinnacle, but DraftKings has the Athletics juiced to -144 at home, which is where the value flag goes up on St. Louis. Public money is split, the line move is the tell.
- Day-To-DaySem Robberse SP — Robberse (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals on Monday, which includes an invitation to spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- Day-To-DayVictor Santos RP — The Red Sox traded Santos (undisclosed) and Nick Robertson to the Cardinals on Friday in exchange for Tyler O'Neill (foot), Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.
- Day-To-DayIxan Henderson SP — Henderson (elbow) is starting the season on the 60-day injured list at Triple-A Memphis.
- Day-To-DayPacky Naughton RP — Imaging revealed damage to the UCL in Naughton's left elbow Saturday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
- Day-To-DayZack Thompson RP — The Cardinals reassigned Thompson (shoulder) to minor-league camp Monday.
- 10-Day-ILRamon Urias 3B — The Cardinals placed Urias on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with right elbow lateral epicondylitis.
- 15-Day-ILMatt Pushard RP — The Cardinals must decide soon whether to return Pushard (knee) to the active roster or expose the Rule 5 pick to waivers, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- 60-Day-ILLars Nootbaar LF — Nootbaar (heels) will begin a rehab assignment over the weekend, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
- 10-Day-ILMax Muncy 3B — Muncy (hand) is still being held out of all baseball activities and has no timetable for a return, MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILDenzel Clarke CF — Clarke (foot) is continuing baseball activities and has progressed to on-field batting practice and outfield drills, MLB.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILJacob Wilson SS — Wilson was diagnosed with a left shoulder sprain after exiting Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Orioles, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILBrooks Kriske RP — Kriske was removed from Tuesday's game against the Cardinals with right shoulder soreness, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
- 60-Day-ILGunnar Hoglund SP — Hoglund (knee/back) was given a cortisone injection in his left hip May 1, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
The injury report is doing the A's no favors. Jacob Wilson (shoulder), Max Muncy (hand), and Denzel Clarke (foot) are all on the shelf, which is a real chunk of the everyday lineup. Lars Nootbaar finally starting a rehab assignment is the bigger Cardinals headline — get him back in left and this team's offense gets a different shape. For today, though, give me McGreevy, the under, and a quick afternoon flight home.