(Jupiter, FL) The St. Louis Cardinals will have a similar look at the top of their lineup as they host the Houston Astros in Game 2 of their Grapefruit League schedule this afternoon as Matt Carpenter, Jason Heyward, and Matt Holliday will again bat 1-2-3.
Jhonny Peralta will see his first action and bat fourth, followed by Mark Reynolds, who is also making his spring debut.
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“Yeah, feel comfortable putting just about any of them anywhere,” commented Matheny on the flexibility he has with the middle of his lineup.
Matt Carpenter, 3B
Jason Heyward, DH
Matt Holliday, LF
Jhonny Peralta, SS
Mark Reynolds, 1B
Stephen Piscotty, RF
Ty Kelly, 2B
Tommy Pham, CF
Tony Cruz, C
(Marco Gonzales, P)
Tyler Lyons will be first in line to relieve Gonzales with Zach Petrick, Nick Greenwood, Kevin Siegrist, Seth Maness, Sam Tuivailala, and Dean Keikhefer also available in the bullpen.
–Matt Adams and Kolten Wong are expected to start on Saturday at Washington, as is Randal Grichuk–who has recently returned to workouts after dealing with back soreness.
EXTRA SWINGS FOR CARPENTER
–With regulars only receiving limited swings this early into the Grapefruit League schedule, Matt Carpenter got a few extra cuts in after Thursday’s opener. The third baseman took advantage of a new feature outside the Cardinals clubhouse–swinging a sledgehammer onto a tire that is buried halfway into the ground.
