Nolan Arenado, D-backs try their luck again vs. Cardinals

It's a special series in St. Louis for Nolan Arenado, as the Arizona Diamondbacks' third baseman has returned to the stadium he called home for the previous five seasons.

"When I opted-in in 2022 to come back, I genuinely thought I was going to finish my career here," Arenado told reporters about St. Louis before first pitch of Monday's series opener. "But I also knew in the back of my mind, ‘Baseball happens and things happen.'"

Arenado and the Diamondbacks will look to rebound from a 3-2 loss in the opener when they take the field Tuesday night against the Cardinals.

Arenado was a three-time All-Star and won two Gold Gloves while playing for the Cardinals from 2021-25, but St. Louis shook up its core after missing the postseason the past three years. The Cardinals traded Arenado to the D-backs in January for right-handed pitcher Jack Fernandez.

Arenado said he doesn't harbor any ill will for how his time there ended.

"St. Louis is always first class," he said. "They know how much I care about them and how much I loved my time here."

The Cardinals' faithful paid back that attitude by giving Arenado a standing ovation before his first at-bat on Monday.

The good feelings for the Diamondbacks don't extend much further beyond Arenado's homecoming. They have dropped three straight games to fall to 8-15 in their last 23 to fall back to .500 at 39-39.

Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez (6-2, 2.45 ERA) will look to end the Diamondbacks' woes when he takes the mound on Tuesday.

Rodriguez has been a force at the top of the rotation all season, allowing one or no runs in eight of his 15 starts. The latest outing came Wednesday, when he threw seven innings of one-run ball as the Diamondbacks posted an 8-1 win over the Los Angeles Angels.

Only two of Rodriguez's 250 career starts have come against the Cardinals, but the 33-year-old is 1-0 with a 5.56 ERA vs. them.

He'll go against St. Louis right-hander Kyle Leahy (5-4, 4.63 ERA), who is seeking to rebound after taking the loss his last time out against San Diego. He struck out seven but allowed three runs and seven hits over six innings in a 6-1 setback last Wednesday.

This will be the first career start against the Diamondbacks for Leahy, 29. In three previous relief appearances totaling just 3 1/3 innings against them, he has an 8.10 ERA without a decision.

Center fielder Nathan Church was a catalyst for St. Louis' success on Monday, racking up two hits, an RBI and a stolen base out of the bottom spot in the order.

Church, 25, has taken the place of Opening Day starter Victor Scott II in recent weeks, posting a .299 batting average over the past 30 games.

"This kid's hungry -- he wants to be really good," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of Church. "He's starting to see more pitches. We're seeing a couple walks now, which is also helpful. It's something that he's been focused on."

"He has the ability to take a bag, he's got the speed to do it, and he's a really, really good defender, so the combination of all those things is something to get excited about."

--Field Level Media