Florida @ St. Louis preview
Busch Stadium
Last Meeting ( May 19, 2010 ) Florida 5, St. Louis 1
As far as the Florida Marlins are concerned, the Hanley Ramirez saga is officially a thing of the past.
Ramirez apologized to teammates and manager Fredi Gonzalez prior to Wednesday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals, two days after being critical of both parties after he was removed from a game for not hustling.
With the apologies out of the way, Ramirez returned to the lineup and did what he does best. The All-Star shortstop finished with three hits and drove in a run to guide the Marlins to a 5-1 win.
Florida, which has won six of its past seven, will go for the two-game series sweep when they take on the host Cardinals on Thursday afternoon.
Ramirez, who is in the third year of a six-year, $70 million contract, is batting .303 with seven home runs and 21 RBIs. He was taken out of Monday’s loss to Arizona after failing to sprint after a loose ball in the outfield, but later explained that he was unable to do so after being hit on the foot with a pitch earlier in the game.
Ramirez’s three hits on Wednesday matched hit total from last season against the Cardinals when he went just 3-for 21 on the campaign.
The Cardinals, who snapped a two-game win streak and have been scuffling of late, will try to head into the season’s first interleague series on a winning note.
The club turn's to last year’s National League Cy Young third-place finisher Adam Wainwright, who is 5-2 with a 2.48 ERA through eight starts in 2010.
The 28-year-old right-hander, who opened the year with three straight victories, is fresh off his worst outing of the season. He surrendered a season-high four runs on seven hits in six innings of work of a 4-3 loss to Atlanta.
Wainwright has been great in eight appearances -- six starts -- against the Marlins in his career. He is 2-1 with a 2.61 ERA in that span.
Taking the ball for Florida is left-hander Nate Robertson, who will be trying for his third win in a row.
Robertson, who was acquired from Detroit prior to the season’s onset, is 4-3 with a 4.35 ERA through eight starts. The 32-year old has one win in three career appearances against St. Louis.
The Marlins have received a surprise showing from first-year closer Leo Nunez, who has nine saves with a 1.56 ERA and is perfect in his last five save opportunities.