Since 1920, no one has hit Giants better than Matt Carpenter
A lot of batters have faced the Giants in the live-ball era, including such sluggers as Mike Piazza, Alex Rodriguez and Manny Ramirez. Not one has hit the Giants as well as Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter.
Carpenter's .442 career average (34 for 77) against the Giants -- who open a three-game series against the Cardinals on Friday night at Busch Stadium -- is the highest by any opponent since 1920 (minimum 75 plate appearances).
HIGHEST CAREER BATTING AVERAGE VS. GIANTS SINCE 1920*
| Player | Batting average |
| Matt Carpenter | .442 |
| Alex Rodriguez | .432 |
| Mike Darr | .427 |
| Darin Erstad | .400 |
| Manny Ramirez | .388 |
| * Minimum 75 plate appearances |
Adam Wainwright faces the Giants in the series opener. The right-hander got off to a bad start this season but has not lost any of his last seven starts.
ADAM WAINWRIGHT SEASON BREAKDOWN
| Statistic | First four starts | Last seven starts |
| W-L | 0-3 | 5-0 |
| ERA | 7.25 | 4.89 |
| Opponent batting average | .326 | .293 |
| Opponent OPS | .916 | .777 |
| Strikeout/walk ratio | 0.90 | 4.43 |
Waino faces right-hander Johnny Cueto, who is having an excellent season (8-1, 2.31 ERA) in his first season in San Francisco. The Cardinals, however, have given Cueto a much tougher time over his career than have the rest of the clubs.
JOHNY CUETO VS. CARDINALS/REST OF MLB (CAREER)
| Statistic | Vs. Cardinals | Vs. Rest of MLB |
| Starts | 20 | 217 |
| W-L | 5-8 (.385) | 99-63 (.611) |
| ERA | 4.08 | 3.17 |
| Opponent batting average | .257 | .237 |
| Strikeouts/nine innings pitched | 5.5 | 7.6 |
| Strikeout/walk ratio | 2.0 | 3.0 |
NATIONAL LEAGUE TEAMS WITH BEST RECORD VS. CARDINALS SINCE 2008*
| Team | Record (win percentage) |
| San Francisco Giants | 35-29 (.547) |
| New York Mets |
27-29 (.482) |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 70-76 (.479) |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 32-36 (.471) |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 35-40 (.467) |
|
* Regular season and postseason |
