Padres' search for offense continues against Cardinals, Andre Pallante

The host St. Louis Cardinals will look to continue to take advantage of the San Diego Padres' offensive futility in the middle contest of a three-game set on Tuesday.

The Padres own the worst batting average in the major leagues by a wide margin, and their mark declined further in the series opener. St. Louis' Dustin May tossed a one-hit complete game in a 3-0 win on Monday, lowering the Padres' batting average to .217.

Andre Pallante (7-4, 3.88 ERA) will attempt to extend the Padres' misery on Tuesday as he shoots for his fourth consecutive winning decision. The 27-year-old right-hander is 2-0 with a 2.31 ERA through two outings this month. He threw six innings of two-run, three-hit ball on Wednesday, striking out five and walking two in a 9-2 road victory over the New York Mets.

"Pallante did a really nice job," St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said after that game. "He filled up the zone, he was on the attack. The slider was a good pitch for him, he pitched in to lefties, threw the sinker in to righties. Overall, his mix was really good."

A year after posting a 5.31 ERA (the fourth-worst figure in the majors among qualified starters) in 31 starts, Pallante has asserted himself as one of St. Louis' most reliable arms.

In seven career appearances (two starts) against the Padres, Pallante is 2-1 with a 2.95 ERA.

San Diego enters the matchup with Pallante having dropped 14 of its past 20 games. The Padres were held scoreless for the eighth time on Monday, and they have scored the fewest runs in the major leagues (272).

"It was tough on our guys tonight," said San Diego bench coach Randy Knorr, who filled in for the suspended Craig Stammen on Monday. "I believe we'll bounce back tomorrow."

Stammen served a one-game suspension on Monday in connection with Padres pitcher Ron Marinaccio hitting Baltimore's Gunnar Henderson with a pitch on Saturday. Marinaccio was handed a three-game suspension, which he appealed.

Right-hander Michael King (4-5, 3.46 ERA) will search for his first road victory since April 19 when he starts for San Diego on Tuesday. In his past four starts overall, King is 0-3 with a 6.45 ERA. Last time out, he yielded three runs on seven hits in 6 2/3 innings, striking out three and walking three in a no-decision against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. The Padres won 5-4.

Despite taking a step in the right direction, King has been less than satisfied with his recent outings.

"Bad, but just another battle," King said of the Wednesday start. "I was able to keep them off-balance a little bit throughout the game, but we're still working on it. We'll get there."

King is in the first season of a three-year, $75 million contract signed in December.

King is 1-1 with a 1.98 ERA in three career appearances (two starts) against St. Louis. The 31-year-old dazzled against the Cardinals on May 7, allowing just one run on one hit in six innings. He struck out six and walked two in a no-decision during a game that San Diego lost 2-1.

--Field Level Media