MLB PREVIEW (Interstat) — St. Louis at Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE (Interstat) — The National League Central’s top two teams collide Monday afternoon at American Family Field, where the first-place Milwaukee Brewers host the second-place St. Louis Cardinals in the opener of a three-game series.

First pitch is set for a clear, 75-degree afternoon.

Milwaukee (30-20) leads St. Louis (29-22) by a half-game in the division standings. The Brewers are 4-2 in their past six games but dropped Sunday’s series finale 5-1 to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Rookie right-hander Carlos Rodriguez worked two scoreless innings of relief in that loss, extending his scoreless streak to four appearances.

St. Louis arrives after a 7-6, 11-inning defeat Saturday at Cincinnati that snapped a two-game winning streak. The Cardinals have split their past 10 contests.

The probable pitching matchup features St. Louis right-hander Jacob Misiorowski (4-2, 3.12 ERA) against a Milwaukee starter to be announced. Misiorowski has won his past two decisions, striking out 22 over 18 innings in that span. The Cardinals also have lefty Matthew Liberatore (2-2) available.

Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker is the hottest hitter in the series. Over his past 10 games, Walker is batting .324 with four home runs and 14 RBIs, including a 3-for-4, one-homer, four-RBI performance Saturday at Cincinnati. He homered in three of the past four games entering Monday.

Milwaukee counters with Rodriguez, who has a 1.59 ERA across 17 innings this season and has not allowed an earned run in his past four outings.

The teams split a two-game set in St. Louis on May 4-6, with Milwaukee winning the opener 6-2 and the Cardinals taking the finale 6-3.

The Interstat game simulator projects a 6-5 Milwaukee victory. The Brewers are installed as a minus-1.5 run-line favorite, with the over/under set at 7.5 runs.

Following Monday’s game, the teams meet again Tuesday and Wednesday at American Family Field before the Cardinals return home for a 10-game homestand and the Brewers embark on a three-city, 10-game road trip.