April 19-21: Cardinals vs. Marlins Series Preview

The Fish can move above .500 with a sweep.

Good morning, dear reader! If you’ll remember, I didn’t have much good news to report in my last series preview. The offense was lifeless, but I was hopeful the team could capitalize on the comfort of returning home. I even went out on a limb to say that playing in front of the hometown fans would spark the offensive and get things moving in the right direction.

Although my usual 45-ish minute drive to LoanDepot Park turned into a three-hour affair, I was pleasantly surprised by the turnout and atmosphere for the home opener once I arrived at my seat in the fifth inning. The concourse was packed shoulder-to-shoulder, as was the standing room area by the Budweiser Bar in left-center field. I’ve attended almost every home opener since the time I could walk, and this was the best crowd of them all.

The players noticed it, too. Garrett Cooper told MLB.com’s Christina De Nicola that he couldn’t hear himself think with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. “I don’t think it’s been that loud in my five years here. It was a good spark to start us.”

Miguel Rojas, the unofficial captain of the Marlins, felt the love on Thursday night.

Let’s keep it up for this series against the St. Louis Cardinals! Here’s all you need to know for the three game set.

• Schedule, Watch, Listen
• Probable Pitchers
• Recent Lineups
• What To Watch For
• Poll: How Will This Series Play Out?

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Schedule, Watch, Listen

Tuesday, April 19 at 6:40 pm

Wednesday, April 20 at 6:40 pm

Thursday, April 21 at 6:40 pm

• TV broadcast for all 3 games: Bally Sports Florida (Paul Severino and Tommy Hutton)
• Radio broadcast for all 3 games: 940 AM WINZ, WAQI 710 (Glenn Geffner and J.P. Arencibia)
• Thursday’s game is also available to out-of-market viewers on MLB Network

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Probable Pitchers

Tuesday: RHP Adam Wainwright vs. LHP Jesús Luzardo

• Wainwright (2021): 3.05 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 21.0 K%, 25.3 HardContact% in 206.1 IP
• Luzardo (2021): 6.61 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 22.0 K%, 25.6 HardContact% in 95.1 IP

Wednesday: STL TBA vs. RHP Sandy Alcantara

• TBA: Will update when announced.
• Alcantara (2022): 3.18 ERA, 1.44 WHIP, 18.8 K%, 22.9 HardContact% in 11.1 IP

Thursday: STL TBA vs. RHP Pablo López

• TBA: Will update when announced.
• López (2022): 0.87 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 20.0 K%, 25.0 HardContact% in 10.1 IP

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Projected Lineups

Roster Resource / FanGraphs

Roster Resource / FanGraphs

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What to watch for on…

Tuesday: The Machine.

• Tuesday’s is your last chance to see Albert Pujols start against the Marlins at home.
• At 42 years old and in his 22nd big league season, Pujols returned to where his Hall of Fame career began: the St. Louis Cardinals. Pujols announced he intends to retire after the 2022 season, marking the end of a historic career. At this point, Pujols has assumed a platoon role against left-handed pitchers. This role was made possible with the National League Cardinals because of the new universal designated hitter rule. Lefty Jesús Luzardo is starting for the Fish on Tuesday, making Pujols a likely candidate for the DH slot. I have to mention, however, that Pujols will have his hands full against Luzardo if the left-hander comes out as strong as he did in his first start.

Wednesday: Ace on the mound.

• In two starts vs. Cardinals: 2 ER, 3 BB, 17 K in 14.1 IP. .192/.246/.192
• Sandy Alcantara was lights out in his two starts against the Cardinals last season. St. Louis opponents struggled against Sandy, failing to record an extra-base hit and posting a measly .192 batting average against. After a less than sharp Opening Day performance, Alcantara came back strong in the Marlins’ home opener last week. He’ll look to do the same on Tuesday night.

Thursday: Who will prevail: Pablo López or Nolan Arenado?

• López has given Marlins fans back-to-back stellar starts, allowing one run on seven hits, three walks, and eight strikeouts.
• Arenado is scorching hot, slashing .433/.514/1.000 with four home runs and more walks (5) than strikeouts (4). He’s also driven in more than a quarter of the team’s runs.