Diamondbacks 11 - 7 Cardinals
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May 20, 2016 - 4:23 AM The last time Carlos Martinez faced the Arizona Diamondbacks, he finished off the season's opening month with a dominant four-game winning streak. The St. Louis Cardinals right-hander will try to avoid a skid of the same length in the next matchup.

Seemingly over a sickness that derailed his hot start, Martinez looks to lead the Cardinals to their eighth straight win over the visiting Diamondbacks on Friday night.

St. Louis (22-19) split a four-game set at Arizona (19-24) from April 25-28, giving the Cardinals wins in 15 of the last 18 games of this series.

Martinez (4-3, 3.14 ERA) was nearly untouchable during his start in that series, allowing three hits in eight innings during an 8-2 victory on April 26. That finished off his 4-0 opening month in which he posted a 1.93 ERA. Since, he has lost three straight starts with nine runs and 15 hits allowed in 15 innings.

He gave up a run and three hits with three walks in 3 1/3 innings of a 4-2 home loss to Pittsburgh on May 6 and had his next start pushed back two days as he overcame a respiratory illness that caused him to drop 15 pounds.

The extra time seemed to help early in Saturday's 5-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, though he unraveled in a 40-pitch fifth inning. After giving up one run over the first four frames, Martinez walked two and allowed three runs in the fifth to end his night.

"I thought his stuff was good," manager Mike Matheny told MLB's official website. "Just that fifth inning, things got rolling and we couldn't get it stopped. ... I thought his stuff was better than what the line looked like."

Martinez's career numbers against the Diamondbacks suggest he might be able to snap his skid.

His eight quality innings last month gave him a 1.29 ERA in three starts against Arizona the last two seasons. Martinez gave up 12 hits and three runs in 21 innings during those outings while walking five and striking out 18.

The Diamondbacks hold a .173 batting average in six looks against him, including three 2014 relief appearances. Yasmany Tomas is 3 for 7 with a double in the matchup.

While Martinez is riding the longest losing streak of his career, Arizona's Patrick Corbin (1-3, 4.14) has gone five straight starts without a victory. The left-hander is 0-2 with a 5.04 ERA while allowing six home runs in that span.

However, he has given up just three runs in 13 1/3 innings in his last two starts, shutting out Atlanta over seven innings of a 5-3 win on May 8 and holding San Francisco to three runs in 6 1/3 innings of Saturday's 5-3 loss.

"He pitched well; he did a nice job," manager Chip Hale told MLB's official website. "Our starters have been getting through the first part of the game. We're starting to establish that."

The worst start during the stretch came during an 11-4 loss to the Cardinals on April 27. Corbin coughed up seven hits and seven runs in 5 2/3 innings while walking five and striking out two.

St. Louis' Aledmys Diaz homered against Corbin in that game. Ruben Tejada has also homered off him last season, and Stephen Piscotty (3 for 5) and Jedd Gyorko (3 for 9) have hit him well.

The Cardinals busted out for 12 hits in Thursday's 13-7 win over Colorado, their third in four games. Matt Carpenter went 3 for 5 with a home run and six RBIs, and Matt Adams went 2 for 3 with four RBIs.






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