Albert Pujols and his St. Louis Cardinals will hit the road to play seven straight games away from Busch Stadium this week. On Monday, the Cardinals will face the New York Mets in a rematch of the National League Championship Series. The Cardinals and Mets played a three game series back in St. Louis to start the season with the Mets coming away with three straight wins, to get them off to a great start, and put the Cardinals in a tailspin to start the season.
The Mets come in winners of three straight games, all over Colorado, and a 41-32 record overall. The Cardinals come in after a 5-1 loss to the Phillies yesterday, with an overall record of 33-39. The Mets have been pretty good at home, coming in with a record of 21-18, while the Cardinals come in with a 16-20 record on the road. Now would be a good time to push that closer to .500.
Mike Maroth will make his St. Louis Cardinals debut tonight, and will face former Cardinal Jorge Sosa, who has been pretty good, with a 6-3 record, and a 4.05 ERA. The Cardinals are hoping for a big lift from the lefthanded Maroth. They need it as they come into the game 8.5 games behind the front running Milwaukee Brewers, and a game behind second place Chicago Cubs.
Albert has not faced Sosa in 2007, and has only faced him four times in his career. Albert is 1-4(.250) with a double and rbi career against Jorge. Adam Kennedy is 3-7 lifetime against Sosa, while Ryan Ludwick is 2-3. Look for both of those guys to be in the lineup tonight.
After their four in New York, the Cardinals will travel to Ohio, to see the Cincinnati Reds Friday Saturday and Sunday.