[UPDATE] As Haudricourt inimitably put it:THEY'VE JUST ANNOUNCED THAT THE GAME HAS BEEN POSTPONED. THERE IS NO MAKEUP DATE YET. NOTHING COUNTS THAT HAPPENED IN THE FIRST TWO INNINGS. THIS ONE WILL RE-STARTED FROM THE BEGINNING.At the end of the day today, either the Brewers or Cardinals will either be in sole possession of first place...weather permitting.
The weather doesn't look exceptionally encouraging. Tom H. was already Twittering about it before noon. But assuming the Brewers can get the game in tonight, they'll be facing Cardinals starter Kyle Lohse. Lohse is 3-2 with a 4.25 ERA in seven starts this season, and is 18-8 with a 3.86 ERA since joining the Cardinals at the start of last season. Ryan Braun, Prince Fielder, Corey Hart and J.J. Hardy have faced him a combined 36 times and never taken him deep, but Craig Counsell did it once.
For the Brewers, Yovani Gallardo returns to the mound. He's 4-1 with a 3.09 ERA in 2009, and has picked up the win in three of his last four starts, holding opposing hitters to a .181/.239/.352 line in the process. He's never beaten the Cardinals, though, going 0-1 in two starts.
Here's tonight's lineup, with Craig Counsell in at third:
2B Rickie Weeks
3B Craig Counsell
LF Ryan Braun
1B Prince Fielder
CF Mike Cameron
SS J.J. Hardy
RF Corey Hart
C Jason Kendall
RHP Yovani Gallardo
The Brewer bullpen is in pretty good shape for tonight's game:
Trevor Hoffman has pitched in three straight games.
Mark DiFelice pitched yesterday.
Carlos Villanueva has not pitched since Wednesday.
Todd Coffey has not pitched since Wednesday.
Mitch Stetter has not pitched since Wednesday.
Seth McClung has not pitched since Saturday.
Jorge Julio has not pitched since Saturday.
The game doesn't start until 7:15, so if you need something else to kill the time, I've compiled some previews of the series. If you're concerned about the weather, here are some St. Louis area radar loops: National Weather Service - St. Louis, National Weather Service - National, Weather Underground, KSDK, Weather.com.
Friday's Game Thread is now open.