- Adam Wainwright can become the first National League to reach 15 wins, but to get there, he’ll have to outpitch Astros left-hander Wandy Rodriguez, who is 12-7 with a 2.89 ERA that ranks seventh in the NL.Wainwright is fifth at 2.61.Oddly enough, Rodriguez is 3-7 against the Cardinals in his career, even though he’s limited Albert Pujols to a .120 average and no extra-base hits or RBI in 25 at-bats.
- After No. 7 takes on No. 5 in St. Louis, No. 6 and No. 3 will duel in San Francisco.Arizona‘s Dan Haren was the NL’s most effective pitcher in the first half, but he’s 3-3 with a 4.91 ERA since the break, dropping him behind five pitchers.Cain currently has a 2.4305 ERA, while teammate Lincecum is at 2.4281.Both are trailing Chris Carpenter at 2.16.
- 25-year-old right-hander Armando Gabino will make his major league debut for the Twins tonight after going 5-3 with a 2.83 ERA, 65 H and 55/22 K/BB in 86 IP for Triple-A Rochester.A reliever for most of the year, he had made just five starts -- and one of those was an abbreviated three-inning outing Friday to put him in line to pitch tonight.Gabino throws in the low-90s consistently as a reliever and has displayed an improved changeup this year.He’s a long shot to last as a starting pitcher, but he’s proven to be a nice find for a guy originally picked up in the minor league Rule 5 draft.
Game of the Night
Los Angeles vs. Colorado - With the NL West gap down to three games after the Rockies’ walkoff grand slam against the Giants last night, the Dodgers travel to Colorado to begin a three-game series tonight.The Dodgers would seem to have the right pitcher on the mound in Clayton Kershaw, but they’ve actually lost each of the left-hander’s last six starts, even though he has allowed just 11 runs during the span.Plus, Kershaw is 2-3 with a 6.07 ERA against Colorado in his career.The Rockies will throw Jason Hammel, who like Kershaw, is 8-7 on the season.It will be a rematch of a July 1 game which the Dodgers won 1-0, leaving Hammel with a complete-game loss.The difference is that tonight’s contest will be in Coors Field, where Hammel is 2-3 with a 7.02 ERA this season.
