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Campillo aims to rescue Braves staff

Jul 29, 2008 - 1:20 PM St. Louis (59-49) at Atlanta (49-56) 7:10 p.m. EDT

ATLANTA (Ticker) -- The Atlanta Braves will turn to Jorge Campillo to rescue a struggling and decimated pitching staff when he takes the mound against the St. Louis Cardinals in the second game of a four-game set on Tuesday.

The Braves have surrendered 34 runs in losing their last three games and have not had a starter go past the fourth inning during the skid. In addition, 11-game winner Tim Hudson was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday with elbow trouble.

The last start for Campillo (5-4, 2.78) was cut short due a nearly two-hour rain delay on Sunday. He will look to duplicate his July 21 start, when he allowed no runs, and just two hits, over seven innings in a 4-0 Braves victory against the Florida Marlins.

A battered bullpen for Atlanta has given up 20 earned runs in their last 15 2/3 innings, so another lengthy performance by Campillo would supply a much needed rest for the weary pen.

St. Louis will turn to Todd Wellemeyer (8-4, 4.19), as the Cardinals try and keep the National League Central a three-team race. The Cardinals sit two games behind the Milwaukee Brewers (60-46) for the wild card and four games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs (62-44).

The 30-year-old righthander is 2-0 on the road in nine starts, posting a 3.31 ERA.

St. Louis has won two of their last three after dropping five in a row, helped in large part by a hot-hitting Albert Pujols. The slugger is 8-for-14 with two home runs, six runs scored and seven RBI in his last three games. He had gone 17 games without a home run prior to a go-ahead two-run blast in the 14th inning against the New York Mets on Saturday.