Cardinals try to bounce back in battle with Brewers

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08/17/2010 - (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - August is Albert Pujols' month to shine, and the St. Louis Cardinals hope the consistent slugger can help get them back into first place.

Looking to snap a two-game losing streak, St. Louis welcomes the Milwaukee Brewers to town for a quick two-game set at Busch Stadium.

The Cardinals swept the Reds in three games early last week to take a one-game lead for the top spot in the National League Central, but after winning Friday's opener with the Cubs, St. Louis lost the final two games of that set to fall a game back of Cincinnati in the division race.

Sunday's 9-7 loss wasn't as close as it looked, as the Cardinals trailed the Cubs by seven runs heading into the ninth. Though they plated five runs in the final frame, they were unable to complete the comeback.

Pujols and Steven Hill both hit solo homers in the setback, with Pujols extending his own major league record of consecutive seasons of at least 30 home runs to 10 campaigns.

"Three things he's the most famous for, which are 30 home runs, 100 RBI and .300 [batting average], that's the least remarkable thing about Albert," said Cardinals manager Tony La Russa. "He's a line drive hitter who hits home runs -- 30 line drives go out of the park. The most remarkable thing about Albert is that over 162 games, he hits .300 and drives in 100 runs."

Pujols is batting .440 with six homers and 14 RBI in 12 games this month, and is a lifetime .347 hitter in August with 76 homers and 207 RBI in 258 games.

The Cardinals, who are just a half-game back in the NL Wild Card race as well, turn tonight to Jaime Garcia, who has pitched to a 6.06 earned run average over his last three games but is coming off a win over the Reds last Tuesday.

The 24-year-old southpaw allowed four runs on two hits and five walks over 5 1/3 innings of an 8-4 triumph, improving to 10-5 with a 2.71 ERA on the season. The young hurler is also 4-2 with a 1.94 ERA in 10 starts at Busch Stadium this year.

Garcia has faced the Brewers three times this year and is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA.

Milwaukee comes into this set having lost five of seven, including a 6-5 setback in Sunday's rubber match of a three-game series at Colorado. Milwaukee scored two runs in the ninth inning to tie it, with Corey Hart's wind-blown pop-up evading Rockies second baseman Clint Barmes to score both runs, but Trevor Hoffman allowed a two-out run-scoring single to Troy Tulowitzki in the bottom of the inning.

"All three games [of the series] ended in the last at-bat for each team that won, so I guess that all makes it interesting," said Brewers manager Ken Macha.

Rickie Weeks was a perfect 4-for-4 with a run scored at the plate for Milwaukee, while Prince Fielder had a two-run single and Ryan Braun contributed three hits to the loss.

Dave Bush draws the starting assignment for the Brewers tonight and is 0-2 over his last three starts, allowing 15 earned runs over 16 1/3 innings.

Bush matched the wrong kind of history Wednesday versus Arizona, as he became just the third pitcher to allow four straight homers, doing so over 10 pitches in the fourth inning of an 8-2 setback.

"You just try to forget about it. Try to move on," said Bush, who also tied a major league record for most homers allowed in an inning while joining former Yankee Chase Wright (2007) and Angel Paul Foytack (1963) as the hurlers to do so in four straight batters.

The 30-year-old Bush fell to 5-10 with a 4.78 ERA this year after his 5 1/3- inning stint versus Arizona.

Bush is 2-6 with a 6.40 ERA in his career versus the Cardinals. He faced them back on April 9, allowing three runs over 5 2/3 frames of a no-decision, and also opposed them in relief as well during this season.

The Cardinals have won 15 of their last 24 versus the Brewers.

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After all the trouble that’s ensued since Braylon Edwards allegedly punched one of LeBron James’ homeboys in the face at a club, the Cleveland Browns have sent away their last remaining player of worth to the New York Jets. This is a great move for Dirty Sanchez and all, but it’s even better for the Knicks. Now Donnie Walsh can say, “You get to haunt Braylon Edwards with your posse if you sign here!” next summer.

Putting that aside for a moment, the move is a clear indication that the new-look Jets are gunning for the Super Bowl this year. I don’t think that New York thought that Dirty Sanchez was going to be such a rock star. With a 75.2 passer rating that was killed against the Jets, Sanchez is doing an admirable job of managing games and putting the Jets in a position to win. The defense has been the major story in New York thus far, but the acquisition of Braylon Edwards makes this offense loaded with talent that can dent any defense…as long as Dirty Sanchez continues his meteoric rise.

Thus far, Edwards has been a non-factor in the NFL piling up just 139 receiving yards on 10 catches. He has yet to find the endzone, and with the Browns mired in the most unsexy quarterback controversy of all time (Anderson vs. Quinn...yawn), there going nowhere fast. Edwards is two seasons removed from a career year which saw him catch 80 passes for 1,289 yards and 16 touchdowns when the Browns were the spread killing monsters of 2007. In 2008, injuries slowed the receiver down to just 873 yards and three touchdowns though he played in all 16 games.

So that being said, we really don’t know if Braylon Edwards is just a flash in the pan, or a legit threat. At 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, he is a prototypical receiver. But he’s also shown a strange, and unwarranted, talent for dropping passes. Lining up opposite Jericho Cotchery, a speed demon with 23 catches, 356 yards and a single touchdown, may give Braylon the open looks he needs. A change of scenery may also rejuvenate the star receiver.

In return, the Browns will receive Chansi Stuckey, online football betting a special teams player you’ve never heard of and a pair of draft picks. That’s a tall order for a guy whose only real value right now is in his name, and it shows no promise to the Browns that they can rebuild around those acquisitions. Braylon was the only reason to hope for the Browns to go 3-14 SU this year. Without him, they don’t have a single guy on offense that can scare any team.

For the Jets, it’s a response to the pounding that they took at the hand of the Saints. Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have averaged around 4.0 yards per carry each on the ground, but striking a fair balance between the passing and rushing attacks in New York has been a struggle. You have to believe that the trio of Dustin Keller, Jericho Cotchery and Braylon Edwards will give Sanchez the weapons he needs to unleash through the air. Theoretically, that would open up holes for the rushing game. But the proposed public option health care plan works in theory too. We need to see the proof in the pudding before we start loading up mega bucks on the New York Jets to take the AFC.

The one wrinkle in this whole thing is that Braylon could very well be suspended by the league for disciplinary action due to his “brawl” with LeBron’s friend. If that’s the case, the Jets may have to bench him for a few games leaving them with a somewhat depleted receiving corps for a few games. Also, this is a guy who gets in fights with people at clubs. New York may not be the best place for him. Just sayin’.

The Jets have a long week before they meet the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football Betting in a virtual pick ‘em game. Braylon’s excess baggage may be a distraction, and his curiously low production may be what we should be expecting of him overall, but for the Jets, taking a chance to strike gold is well worth it. At the end of the year, they can simply just blame it on their rookie quarterback.

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