St. Louis @ Milwaukee preview

Last Meeting ( Jul 9, 2016 ) St. Louis 8, Milwaukee 1

Right-hander Junior Guerra looks to avenge his lone loss of the season on Sunday as the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals play the rubber match of their three-game series at Miller Park. The 31-year-old Venezuelan was taken to task by St. Louis on May 30, but has rebounded by winning each of his last three outings while amassing a 15 1/3-scoreless innings streak over his last two.

A strong pitching performance is sorely needed for the Brewers, who allowed three homers in Saturday's 8-1 setback and fell to the Cardinals for the eighth time in 11 outings this season. Aledmys Diaz launched a three-run shot on Saturday to extend his hitting streak to five games for St. Louis, which is 12-0-1 in its last 13 series with its National League Central rival. The 25-year-old Cuban has feasted on Milwaukee pitching this season, going 15-for-46 with two homers, eight RBIs and seven runs in the 11 encounters and 2-for-3 versus Guerra. Jonathan Villar scored the Brewers' lone run on Saturday and is 6-for-17 with three doubles and as many runs scored to along with five steals during his four-game hitting streak.

TV: 2:10 p.m. ET, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), FSN Wisconsin (Milwaukee)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Mike Leake (5-7, 4.33 ERA) vs. Brewers RH Junior Guerra (6-1, 2.93)

Leake suffered his third straight loss after allowing five runs for the second time in that stretch in a 5-2 setback to Pittsburgh on Tuesday. The 28-year-old looks to get back on track versus Milwaukee, against which he yielded two runs in six innings of a 10-3 triumph on May 31. That victory came on the road for Leake, who is 4-3 in nine starts this season away from Busch Stadium.

Guerra recorded his second consecutive two-hit, seven-strikeout performance in Monday's 1-0 victory over Washington. The four-hit total accounts for half of the amount that the 31-year-old Venezuelan permitted over 6 1/3 innings in a 6-0 setback to the Cardinals. Guerra has been brilliant at home this season, posting a 4-1 mark with a 2.48 ERA and 1.00 WHIP while limiting the opposition to a .206 batting average.

WALK-OFFS

1. St. Louis RF Stephen Piscotty has three homers, eight RBIs and 10 runs scored while hitting safely in nine of his last 10 games.

2. Brewers 2B Scooter Gennett has hit safely in each of his last four games versus the Cardinals.

3. St. Louis 3B Jhonny Peralta homered in his return to the starting lineup following a three-game absence.

PREDICTION: Brewers 3, Cardinals 1