(Photo credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images)

Jordan Walker and the St. Louis Cardinals will look to continue their offensive dominance of the visiting Cincinnati Reds when the teams meet Saturday afternoon in the second contest of a three-game series.

The Cardinals took advantage of three Reds errors on Friday night to score three unearned runs in a 10-3 victory.

St. Louis has 24 runs in the three games between the teams this season.

Walker has been at the heart of the offensive surge against Cincinnati, doubling twice among his three hits on Friday. In three games this year against the Reds, who have lost six of their past eight games, Walker is 7-for-14 with two home runs, three doubles and eight RBIs.

Despite being without star rookie JJ Wetherholt for a second straight game due to a sore groin, the Cardinals got production up and down the lineup to wipe out an early 3-0 deficit on Friday.

'When you look at eight different guys driving in a run, that's exactly the brand of relentless offense we've been trying to build,' St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said. 'We didn't panic when we fell behind early. We ground down their pitching, took heavy at-bats, and the floodgates opened. It's exactly the kind of response you want to see to set the tone for the weekend.'

The Reds, on the other hand, have had trouble establishing a consistent offense since a hamstring injury sidelined Elly De La Cruz on Sunday against Atlanta. In four games without their star shortstop, Cincinnati has just 11 runs while allowing 27.

On Friday, the Reds yielded nine walks in addition to their three errors. Cincinnati manager Terry Francona received an automatic ejection when he argued after replay failed to overturn a safe call in St. Louis' two-run first, ruling that first baseman Sal Stewart came off the bag prematurely on what would've been the third out of the inning.

'Too many mistakes, too many free passes,' Francona said. 'We made errors. We didn't throw strikes, and we paid a big price for it.'

Friday's loss dropped Cincinnati to 2-11 against its National League Central rivals this season. In addition to the De La Cruz injury, the Reds are coping without relievers Emilio Pagan and Graham Ashcraft and backup catcher Jose Trevino.

'We're at a point where we need some stability so much, with everybody going down, that's been a little bit more difficult,' Francona said.

Saturday's game will feature a pair of left-handers in an intriguing pitching matchup.

Nick Lodolo (2-1, 5.20 ERA) will take the mound for Cincinnati, looking to settle down a season marked by an inflated ERA across his initial five starts. Lodolo is 2-1 with a 4.85 ERA in three career starts against St. Louis.

The Cardinals will counter with Matthew Liberatore (3-3, 4.35), who will make his 13th start of the season. Liberatore has shown flashes of dominance this year, racking up 57 strikeouts in 62 innings.

Liberatore will make his first start in June after going 3-2 with a 3.98 ERA in six starts in May. He is 1-1 with a 3.32 ERA in 10 career appearances against Cincinnati, including three starts.

--Field Level Media