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Wacha seeks to avenge loss to Dodgers

Jun 4, 2015 - 1:38 PM (SportsNetwork.com) - Michael Wacha will try to avenge his first loss of the season on Thursday night as the St. Louis Cardinals rematch against the Los Angeles Dodgers with a four-game set.

The Cardinals and Dodgers are set to meet for the second time this season, with St. Louis having won two of three encounters at home from May 29-31. That came after the Cardinals ousted the Dodgers in each of the previous two postseasons, the 2013 NL Championship Series and last year's NL Divisional Series.

Wacha pitched the middle game of the recent series for the Cardinals and took the 5-1 loss, charged with four runs on three hits and three walks over 5 2/3 innings. He did strike out seven, but fell to 7-1 on the year and saw his earned run average go from 1.87 to 2.27.

It marked the first time St. Louis lost in Wacha's 10 starts this season and the right-hander's first loss since Sept. 9. He actually didn't allow a hit until the sixth frame on Saturday, but then struggled and put his club in a hole after allowing a three-run homer to Yasmani Grandal.

"I just got behind Grandal and he put a good swing on a heater, hit it out of here," Wacha said.

Wacha will face the Dodgers for the second time in his career tonight and is 5-0 with a 1.64 ERA in six road starts this season.

Carlos Frias got the win over Wacha last weekend and looks to duplicate those results tonight for the Dodgers.

Frias had yielded 10 runs and 12 hits over four innings in a loss to San Diego on May 24, but bounced back big time versus the Cardinals. He limited St. Louis to only one unearned run in a career-high seven innings of work, scattering five hits and two walks.

"You put that one away and get ready for the next start," Frias said of his start against the Padres.

The right-hander improved to 4-2 with a 4.29 ERA on the season and also will be facing the Cardinals for just the second time in his career.

St. Louis, which leads the NL Central by six games over Pittsburgh, followed up that series win over Los Angeles by taking two of three from the Milwaukee Brewers. The Cards won the final two games of the set, taking Wednesday's finale 7-4.

A five-run first inning keyed St. Louis' victory and Matt Carpenter, Jhonny Peralta and Yadier Molina all had two hits to support starter John Lackey, who got the win after allowing three runs and 10 hits over seven innings.

"John Lackey has absolutely been a surprise for us, as far as just how crisp his stuff has been and being able to eat up as many innings that he has," said Cardinals manager Mike Matheny.

The Cards won for the eighth time in 10 games and got a pair of RBI from Carpenter.

The Dodgers have lost five of their past eight, but still lead the NL West by two games over the San Francisco Giants.

Los Angeles split a four-game set with the Colorado Rockies, splitting a doubleheader on Tuesday before dropping Wednesday's finale 7-6.

The Rockies scored three runs off the Dodgers in the bottom of the ninth inning to rally for the win. Yimi Garcia walked in a run during the frame, J.P. Howell hurled a passed ball that allowed the tying run to cross the plate and Chris Hatcher then allowed Nolan Arenado's game-winning sac fly.

Andre Either knocked in two runs for the Dodgers and Joc Pederson set a Dodgers modern era rookie record by homering for a fifth game in a row. He also tied a Dodgers record held by Shawn Green, Matt Kemp and Roy Campanella, who all homered in five consecutive games for the club.

Pederson is tied for second in the majors with 17 homers.