Cardinals' Matt Carpenter: Playing time trending up

Carpenter will serve as the Cardinals' designated hitter and No. 7 batter in Monday's game against Atlanta.

After he was excluded from the lineup for a stretch of six consecutive games from June 12 through 17 while the Cardinals faced four lefty starters and handed starts to Nolan Arenado and Masyn Winn at DH in the other two matchups with righties, Carpenter will now get his sixth start in a row. He's earned a more stable spot in the lineup against righties after going 6-for-16 with a double and a walk over the previous five games. The lefty-hitting Carpenter should continue to sit regularly versus lefties, however.