Giants seek series split with Cardinals
The visiting San Francisco Giants will seek a split in their four-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday afternoon at Busch Stadium.
The Giants outlasted the Cardinals 9-8 in a 4-hour, 5-minute marathon Wednesday night after losing the first two games of the series 3-1 and 1-0.
San Francisco rookie Logan Webb (1-0, 3.52 ERA) will make his fourth big league start Thursday. The right-hander pitched well in his last outing, holding the San Diego Padres to one run on seven hits in 5 2/3 innings on Saturday.
He struck out seven batters, walked one and didn't get a decision in the Giants' 4-1 loss.
"He did a nice job," San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said. "I like his makeup. He's got confidence, poise. He's got good stuff to work with. Good secondary pitches along with the good fastball. He commands it well. He's aggressive out there, and he's not going to back off. He's got a great way about him."
Webb will be making his first appearance against St. Louis.
The weary Cardinals used six relievers to cover seven innings in Wednesday's loss, and they have played seven games in the past five days, so they are hoping for a strong effort from Thursday starter Dakota Hudson (14-6, 3.53 ERA) as they try to rebound.
Hudson went 4-1 with a 2.38 ERA in six starts in August.
"I just feel more confident with what I'm doing," Hudson said. "Attack it and know that I belong here. That's a little bit of a different approach, mindset-wise, but I feel getting deep in the games is (how) I'm going to have the best value for this team going forward.
"It's just about executing quality pitches. I just have to do it down in the zone -- that's where I feel most comfortable with my stuff and just trusting it to play. ... Getting ahead for me is huge because I'm a groundball pitcher -- the sooner they want to swing, the better off for me."
Hudson started against the Giants in a 9-4 Cardinals victory on July 5. He allowed three runs on six hits and three walks with six strikeouts in five innings.
He is 1-0 with a 3.52 ERA in three career appearances (one start) against the Giants.
The Cardinals saw their National League Central lead shrink to 2 1/2 games over the second-place Chicago Cubs with their loss Wednesday night. They had won 20 of their previous 25 games.
On the injury front, Giants reliever Tony Watson sustained a bruised wrist making a diving tag on Kolten Wong at first base Wednesday night.
Also, San Francisco pitcher Johnny Cueto experienced a minor setback on his comeback from Tommy John surgery. He developed back stiffness during his bullpen session Tuesday, and his return date is uncertain.
"After a while, I thought I should stop and avoid hurting something else," Cueto told MLB.com. "It's frustrating, but I understand and just have to wait and hope that it goes away. I'll just go day by day, and I'll do whatever I need to do. I just have to be smart and realize that I have two more years with the Giants, so I will do what they tell me to do."
--Field Level Media
