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Wainwright, Cardinals look to slow surging Royals

Jun 13, 2007 - 1:58 PM St Louis (27-34) at Kansas City (25-40) 8:10 pm EDT

KANSAS CITY, Missouri (Ticker) -- The American League has dominated interleague play over the last few seasons. The Kansas City Royals are no exception.

The Royals will go for their fourth win over their last five contests when they host the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday.

Kansas City took the series' opener on Tuesday, 8-1, behind three-hit performances from Esteban German, Mark Teahen and rookie Alex Gordon. The Royals also earned a 2-1 series win over the Philadelphia Phillies, during which they scored a combined 25 runs in their two wins.

Adam Wainwright (4-5, 5.19 ERA) will be charged with silencing the hot Kansas City bats for the Cardinals. The first-year starter has been up-and-down this season, and had a stretch of three straight strong starts snapped with a six-inning, four-run, eight-hit dud last Thursday against Cincinnati.

The Royals will counter with Odalis Perez (3-6, 5.68). The veteran lefthander has also battled consistency problems this season, and took a loss in his last start when he allowed three runs and seven hits in 5 1/3 innings against the Cleveland Indians last Thursday.

Perez, who began his career in the National League, owns a 2-3 career record with an 8.57 ERA in nine games - six starts against the Cardinals.

St. Louis has just one win in its last five games.