Cardinals at Braves Preview: Pivotal NL Showdown at Truist Park ATLANTA (Interstat) — The St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves continue their intradivision series Wednesday at Truist Park, with first pitch scheduled for 7:20 p.m. under partly cloudy skies and a temperature of 87 degrees. Atlanta enters the contest with the National League’s best record at 49-33, holding a six-game lead over St. Louis (43-38) in the standings. The Braves have won the first two games of this set, including a 1-1 tie Tuesday that was called after the completion of regulation due to curfew. Right-hander Kyle Leahy (6-5, 3.70 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Cardinals. Leahy is coming off a bounce-back performance Sunday against Miami, earning a win after allowing one earned run on two hits over five innings with five strikeouts. In his previous start June 23 against Arizona, he tossed 6 1/3 scoreless innings in a losing effort. Leahy has alternated quality starts with struggles over his past five outings, posting a 3.55 ERA in that span while striking out 23 batters in 26 1/3 innings. Left-hander Chris Sale (12-4, 2.18 ERA) will counter for Atlanta. The 37-year-old veteran has been dominant this season, striking out 10 batters in each of his past two starts. Sale took a tough-luck loss Sunday at San Francisco, allowing one earned run on eight hits over six innings while fanning 10. In his prior start June 20 against Milwaukee, he threw 5 2/3 shutout innings in a win. Sale has allowed two earned runs or fewer in four of his past five starts. Atlanta has been installed as a -1.5 run-line favorite, according to Interstat. The game simulator projects a 4-3 Braves victory, with the over/under set at 9 runs. The Cardinals are seeking to snap a three-game losing streak, including a 5-1 defeat Saturday and a 4-0 shutout Friday, both against Miami. St. Louis’s offense has scuffled, scoring three runs or fewer in five of its past six games. Atlanta dropped two of three at San Francisco over the weekend, including a 3-2 loss Sunday in which Sale was the hard-luck loser. The Braves have won six of their past 10 games overall. Following Wednesday’s contest, the two teams close the series Thursday before the Cardinals travel to Chicago to face the Cubs and the Braves return home to host the New York Mets for a five-game series.