Cardinals' Kyle Gibson starts vs. Cleveland to begin final home series: First Pitch

The Cardinals begin their final home series of the season Friday against the Guardians. First pitch is set for 7:15 p.m.

St. Louis lost Thursday to Pittsburgh , taking three of four in the series.

Cleveland, with the second-best record in the American League, is close to clinching a division title and could do so in St. Louis. The Guardians' magic number is three. Any combination of three Guardians wins or Royals losses will lock up the AL Central.

Right-hander Kyle Gibson (8-7, 4.11) will take the mound Friday for the Cardinals.

Gibson has a 0.95 ERA in his last three starts after limping to a 6.91 mark the five starts before that.

For his career, Gibson has a 5.29 ERA vs. Cleveland in 22 games, his third-most starts vs. any opponent.

The Guardians will counter with right-hander Ben Lively (12-9, 3.87), a 32-year-old who's been with four MLB teams in his five big-league seasons. In the middle of that, he spent time in the Korean league.

Though most of his pitches grade out as just above average, his hard-hit rate is in the top 10% of the league.

Rookie Thomas Saggese starts at third base, his first appearance at that position in his brief big-league career.

The Cardinals are 77-76, third in the NL Central and eight games out of the final wild-card spot.

The Guardians are 89-65, first in the AL Central. They've already clinched a playoff berth and lead Kansas City by 6 1/2 games for the division title. The Guardians are 12-6 in September.

Cleveland has the third-best team ERA in the American League (3.67), powered mostly by its stellar relief corps.

Switch-hitting third baseman Jose Ramirez, in the American League's top 10 in numerous offensive categories, has been Cleveland's best offensive player.

The Cardinals are 14-22 all-time vs. Cleveland in interleague play and 8-12 at home.

9. Pedro Pagés, C

P: Kyle Gibson, RHP

To be updated

P: Ben Lively, RHP

Injury report

Willson Contreras (fractured finger): The catcher fractured the middle finger on his right hand when struck by a pitch Aug. 24 , and his season is effectively over following an exam Monday with team medical officials. He was prescribed another two weeks of inactivity to continue the healing process, and that assures he will not be able to play during the regular season, which ends when September does. Updated Sept. 17

Lance Lynn (right knee inflammation): The veteran's season came to an end Wednesday , a day after he pitched six strong innings to pick up a win over Pittsburgh and remain unbeaten at Busch since July 2017. His contract has a $12-million option for 2025, though factors are stacking up that would lead the Cardinals to decline it. Updated Sept. 18