SAN FRANCISCO (Interstat) — The St. Louis Cardinals will try to avoid a three-game sweep Wednesday, Sept. 9, when they close their series against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. First pitch is scheduled for the afternoon, with the game expected to continue into the evening.

St. Louis (72-74) has lost the first two games of the series, dropping a 5-4 decision in 11 innings Monday and falling 2-1 on Tuesday. The Cardinals have lost four of their past six and are 4-6 in their last 10. St. Louis recently took two of three at Colorado, winning 7-6 on Sept. 4 and 10-8 on Sept. 6 around a 10-7 loss on Sept. 5. The Cardinals also won two of three at the Los Angeles Dodgers after losing two of three to Pittsburgh.

Quinn Mathews has been a bright spot for St. Louis. In Tuesday’s loss, the left-hander allowed two earned runs on five hits over six innings, striking out four. Over his past three starts, Mathews has surrendered four earned runs across 16 2/3 innings while striking out 15. He will be a player to watch Wednesday.

Blade Tidwell (0-2) is the probable starter for St. Louis. The right-hander will face a San Francisco team that has won two straight and six of its last 10. The Giants (61-86) have been led by improved pitching during the series, particularly from Landen Roupp. Roupp, San Francisco’s player to watch, earned the win Tuesday after throwing six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two. He has won each of his past three starts, giving up two earned runs over 16 innings with nine strikeouts.

In Tuesday’s 2-1 Giants victory, Christian Koss went 2 for 3 with a home run and one RBI. Joel Kuhnel allowed one earned run in 1 1/3 innings of relief. For St. Louis, Gordon Graceffo tossed two scoreless innings out of the bullpen, and Bryan Torres drove in a run.

San Francisco went 2-4 on its recent road trip through Pittsburgh and New York, including a 9-5 win at the Mets on Sept. 5. The Giants also beat Atlanta 7-3 on Aug. 31.

The forecast for game time calls for clear skies and a temperature of 82 degrees.

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 5-4 St. Louis victory. The ELO system gives the Cardinals a 51.9% chance to win. St. Louis has been installed as a 1.5-run favorite, and the over/under is 8.

Following Wednesday’s series finale, the Cardinals will open a three-game home series against the Chicago White Sox on Friday. The Giants will return home to face the San Diego Padres on Friday. The teams will meet again Sept. 14-16 in St. Louis for a three-game series.