Milwaukee Brewers vs. St. Louis Cardinals

The topsy-turvy NL Central has been going between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Milwaukee Brewers alternating hot and cold streaks. Currently it is the Cardinals soaring to the top of the division, while Milwaukee is trying to get back on track. The two NL Central rivals face off in the second of a three-game set at Miller Park.

St. Louis (46-39) opened up a two-game lead in the division over second-place Milwaukee (43-40) on basis of their series opening 5-0 win. The Cardinals have now won three straight in the season series after dropping the first four.

The Milwaukee Brewers may be coming apart at the seams more than just on the field after All-Star Ryan Braun wondered aloud whether Milwaukee had the arms to compete in the long run and suggested that the team make a move quickly.

Braun, backing down on his comments prior to Tuesday’s game, and his offensive teammates did not help matters by being shutout at home. The Brewers are struggling at the place, especially against the Cardinals, who have held them to two runs or less four straight times. Prince Fielder is hitting just .190 against St. Louis this year.

It will be up to Todd Wellemeyer (7-7, 5.44) to keep Milwaukee’s bats cold. Wellemeyer faces the Brewers for the third time this season, posting a 1-1 record with a 4.91 ERA. He picked up a win in his last outing, giving up two runs on seven hits while striking out six in 7 1/3 innings of work in a 5-2 win over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday.

Jeff Suppan (5-6, 4.60) will go for the Brewers facing his old team once again. He has had tremendous success against the St. Louis Cardinals, when he was a member of the 2006 World Series championship team. He has gone 5-1 with a 2.44 ERA in seven starts against them since 2007, but had his worst outing against them on May 26, allowing five runs, including three homers in just 3 2/3 innings of an 8-1 loss.

Suppan picked up a no-decision but pitched well in the Brewers 2-1 loss in extra innings on Friday. Suppan has not had much success at home, however. He is 1-5 with a 6.08 ERA there this year.

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