The set-up: The Cards lost the opener of their four-game home series with the Phillies, 6-2 on Thursday. St. Louis went into Friday's contest having scored three or fewer runs in seven of its previous nine games. but pounded out 15 hits, including three HRs, in a 12-4 Friday win to even the series at a game apiece. It marked only the second time all season the Cardinals have scored in double digits. As for the Phillies, it was their first loss in nine games against an NL Central opponent, as well as being just the Phillies' second defeat in their last nine games, overall. The Phillies enter Saturday's afternoon contest in St. Louis having homered in 13 straight games! Getting back to St. Louis, the phrase "next man up" is starting to wear on the team. It's been a dizzying week of injuries that has left the Cards minus two starting pitchers, a bevy of relievers, their All-Star catcher and now their young shortstop, Paul DeJong. He broke his hand when hit with a pitch Thursday night (he could be out for up to eight weeks) but minus the guy who started their first 41 games at shortstop, the Cardinals trounced the Phillies 12-4 on Friday night. The Cardinals look to build on one of their best offensive showings of the season when they continue a four-game series against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday afternoon.


The pitching matchup: Zach Eflin (1-0, 0.71 ERA) will start for the Phillies, while John Gant (1-1, 4.15 ERA) takes the mound for the Cardinals. The 24-year-old Eflin has been outstanding in his first two big-league starts of the season, allowing one run on seven hits over 12 2/3 innings. He struck out nine in 6 2/3 scoreless frames to beat San Francisco 11-0 on May, before having his last turn in the rotation skipped. Eflin, who is allowing opponents to bat only .159, has never faced the Cardinals. Gant will make a spot start in place of injured ace Carlos Martinez. He has made three relief appearances and one start this season, allowing four runs in 5 1/3 innings in a 6-0 loss to Minnesota on May 7 in his only starting assignment..Gant entered the 2018 season with 27 career appearances, including just nine combined starts with Atlanta in 2016 and St. Louis last year. He is 0-0 with a 4.50 ERA in two games (one start) against the Phillies.

The pick: Not sure just what to expect from Gant but I'm not fooled by Eflin's two excellent 2018 starts. He made exactly a 11 starts each of the previous two seasons while posting ERAs of 5.54 and 6.16 plus WHIP's of 1.23 and 1.41, respectively. Make St. Louis an 8* play.