St. Louis @ Los Angeles preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 21, 2018 ) St. Louis 5, LA Dodgers 2

The surging St. Louis Cardinals will have a familiar face in the clubhouse Wednesday when they look to complete a three-game sweep of the host Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cardinals have won 12 of their last 14 games and bolstered their offense with the addition of Matt Adams, who returns to his former team when a trade was worked out Tuesday after he was claimed off waivers from Washington.

Yadier Molina snapped an 0-for-18 slump with a two-run homer and Marcell Ozuna added a two-run blast in Tuesday’s 5-2 win as St. Louis took over sole possession of the National League’s first wild-card spot and moved 2 1/2 games back of the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central. Bud Norris recorded his second save of the series for the Cardinals, who improved to 16-4 in August and 23-11 under interim manager Mike Shildt. The Dodgers are 3 1/2 games behind first-place Arizona in the NL West and 2 1/2 back in the race for the NL’s second wild card after going 3-for-21 with runners in scoring position in their last two games. Manny Machado had three hits in Tuesday’s loss while Justin Turner went 0-for-5, snapping his season-high 14-game hitting streak.

TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, ESPN, FS Midwest (St. Louis), SportsNet LA (Los Angeles)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals LH Jack Flaherty (7-6, 3.05 ERA) vs. Dodgers RH Walker Buehler (6-4, 3.19)

Flaherty recorded his third straight victory last Friday, when he allowed three hits over six scoreless innings against Milwaukee. The 22-year-old Southern California native last pitched at Dodger Stadium as a high school junior in the Southern Section Division 1 Championship game in 2013. Flaherty, who is facing the Dodgers for the first time, has given up a total of two runs with 23 strikeouts over three starts across 19 innings this month.

Buehler turned in another impressive outing last Friday, holding Seattle to one run on three hits over six frames in the Dodgers’ 11-1 victory. “They've got a good, young arm over there,” Robinson Cano told reporters. “His fastball gets to you and everything is hard, the breaking ball, the slider or cutter. He’s got a bright future ahead.” The 24-year-old rookie is making his first start versus St. Louis and owns a 93-to-21 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 87 1/3 innings this season.

WALK-OFFS

1. St. Louis has won eight consecutive series, matching its longest streak since 2015.

2. The Dodgers placed RHP J.T. Chargois (neck) on the 10-day disabled list and recalled SHP Pat Venditte from Triple-A Oklahoma City.

3. The Cardinals activated RHP Carlos Martinez (shoulder) from the 10-day disabled list and optioned INF Patrick Wisdom to Triple-A Memphis.

PREDICTION: Dodgers 5, Cardinals 3