(Photo credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-Imagn Images)

After hosting the National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers for five games this week, the Cardinals welcome the NL East-best Atlanta Braves to St. Louis on Friday for the opener of a three-game series.

The Cardinals fell for the fourth time in five games with an 8-4 loss to the Brewers on Thursday.

Despite that run, St. Louis is 6-8 over the last two weeks. Those games have been against the Miami Marlins, Chicago Cubs, Brewers and Braves, all teams currently sitting in playoff positions.

The Cardinals visited Atlanta from June 30 to July 2, taking two of three from the Braves.

'You look at the gauntlet of the schedule, going to Atlanta, going into Wrigley. I like the way we competed there,' St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said. 'There's some real positives to that stretch, but we've got to finish strong against Atlanta.'

Cardinals right-hander Kyle Leahy (7-4, 3.86 ERA) will start Friday's opener against the Braves.

Leahy, 29, has won his last two decisions, allowing a total of one run on five hits while striking out 11 batters in 10 innings.

This will mark the first time he's faced the Braves as a starter. In five relief appearances, he has a 2.35 ERA without a decision.

If the Cardinals want to take another series against the Braves, they will need to get their bats going. The team hit just .175 (28-for-160) in the last five games and managed only 17 runs.

All-Star outfielder Jordan Walker, who leads the majors with 73 RBIs, has been the team's hottest hitter of late. In July, he's batting .353 (12-for-34) with four home runs and 15 RBIs.

Atlanta won consecutive contests to take a three-game series in Pittsburgh against the Pirates. On Thursday afternoon, the Braves posted a 10-5 victory.

'It's a good team over there,' Braves manager Walt Weiss said about the Pirates. 'It's not easy coming in here and winning the series. A lot of good things are happening.'

Veteran left-hander Chris Sale (9-6, 2.27) is scheduled to start for the Braves.

Sale, 37, won for the first time since May 28 after allowing three runs on seven hits in five innings of a 14-3 romp over the visiting New York Mets on Saturday.

Friday will be just the third time Sale has faced the Cardinals. He has a 1.13 ERA without a decision in his previous two starts.

His last start against them came on May 13, 2023, as a member of the Boston Red Sox. He allowed one run on three hits and a walk with nine strikeouts.

With 120 home runs, Atlanta features one of the NL's more powerful lineups.

The Braves are tied with Pittsburgh for the fourth-most homers in the National League.

First baseman Matt Olson, an All-Star this season like Sale, leads the club with 25 homers in 92 games. That's four off last year's total, which came in 162 games.

--Field Level Media