Miami takes 5-game skid into matchup with St. Louis
St. Louis Cardinals (32-32, third in the NL Central) vs. Miami Marlins (23-41, fifth in the NL East)
Miami; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Miami enters the game as losers of their last five games.
The Marlins are 11-22 on their home turf. Miami has hit 48 home runs this season, the lowest total in the National League. Jorge Alfaro leads the team with nine, averaging one every 19.8 at-bats.
The Cardinals are 12-19 on the road. St. Louis has hit 79 home runs as a team this season. Marcell Ozuna leads the club with 17, averaging one every 13.8 at-bats.
TOP PERFORMERS: Starlin Castro leads the Marlins with 27 RBIs and is batting .225. Alfaro is 7-for-27 with two doubles, a home run and seven RBIs over the last 10 games for Miami.
Ozuna leads the Cardinals with 30 extra base hits and is slugging .536. Matt Carpenter is 8-for-29 with two home runs and five RBIs over the last 10 games for St. Louis.
LAST 10 GAMES: Marlins: 4-6, .253 batting average, 3.46 ERA, outscored opponents by 15 runs
Cardinals: 6-4, .216 batting average, 3.07 ERA, outscored by two runs
Marlins Injuries: Drew Steckenrider: 60-day IL (elbow), Caleb Smith: 10-day IL (hip), Riley Ferrell: 60-day IL (bicep), Julian Fernandez: 60-day IL (elbow), Peter O'Brien: 10-day IL (ribcage), Neil Walker: 10-day IL (quad), Jon Berti: 10-day IL (oblique), Chad Wallach: 10-day IL (concussion).
Cardinals Injuries: Adam Wainwright: 10-day IL (left hamstring tightness), Miles Mikolas: day-to-day (forearm), Mike Mayers: 10-day IL (shoulder), Brett Cecil: 60-day IL (wrist/forearm), Jedd Gyorko: 10-day IL (back), Yadier Molina: 10-day IL (thumb).
