Carpenter is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Phillies.

EDGE Analysis

Though the Cardinals are facing a right-handed pitcher (Jerad Eickhoff) in the series finale, the lefty-hitting Carpenter will take a seat in what merely amounts to a maintenance day due to the quick turnaround between games. The move to the bench spells an end to a rough series as a starter for Carpenter, who went hitless with five strikeouts in seven at-bats in the first two contests.

Carpenter went 3-for-4 with one run scored and two RBI in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Braves.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter has responded well to dropping out of the leadoff spot, and now has back-to-back multi-hit games for the first time this season. The 33-year-old's .222/.335/.389 slash line can still clearly use some work, but he appears to be trending in the right direction with a .305 average and three home runs over the last 10 games.

Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-2 loss to Atlanta.

EDGE Analysis

The veteran slugger only has seven homers on the year, but three of them have come in the last seven games. Carpenter's .210/.327/.381 slash line and 15 RBI through 49 games are well below expectations, but a shift down to fifth in the order behind the likes of Paul Goldschmidt and Marcell Ozuna might be just what he needs to kick-start his production.

Carpenter is starting at third base and batting fifth Friday against the Braves.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter has led off for the Cardinals in all but one of his 45 starts this season -- he also batted third May 2 -- but drops to fifth Friday after slashing .162/.295/.378 in his last 11 games. Manager Mike Shildt said earlier in May he was sticking with the 33-year-old at the top of the order for the time being, but Dexter Fowler and his .413 OBP will enter the leadoff spot Friday. It's been a season-long struggle for the veteran third baseman, as his .686 OPS would be the worst of his career for a full season by a significant margin.

Carpenter is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rangers, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter has started 18 of the last 19 games but will head to the bench for Sunday's series finale at Texas. The 33-year-old is slashing .212/.307/.348 over 17 games in May. Harrison Bader will enter the leadoff spot and man center field while Jedd Gyorko starts at third base and bats eighth.

Carpenter went 2-for-5 with an RBI ground-rule double and a run in a win over the Rangers on Saturday.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter's fifth-inning blast, which hit the top of the 14-foot wall in left field at Globe Life Park, was originally ruled a home run. However replay review ultimately rendered it Carpenter's eighth two-bagger of the season instead, but it still served to jump-start an impressive four-run inning for the Cardinals. The veteran is still hitting just .212 in May, but he's now reached safely in six straight games while rapping out three extra-base hits (two doubles, one homer) during that stretch.

Carpenter went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to the Braves on Thursday.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter's eighth-inning, 398-foot shot was only the veteran's second home run since April 17 and snapped a 1-for-19 funk that had encompassed his previous four-plus games. Manager Mike Shildt recently gave Carpenter a vote of confidence with respect to his leadoff role, but the fact remains that, despite Thursday's round tripper, the 33-year-old infielder is currently hitting under .200 (.196) for the second consecutive month.

Carpenter, who went 1-for-5 with an RBI double, a walk and a run in a win over the Braves on Tuesday, will remain in the leadoff spot for the time being despite his season-long struggles, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports. "He's got the right approach for it," manager Mike Shildt said. "He's an All-Star-caliber player, an MVP-caliber player. He understands what that looks like. We all want to see the results, including him, [be] more consistent."

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter's season line remains a middling .201/.319/.338 through 182 plate appearances, but the Cardinals' skipper appears set to stick with the veteran at the top of the order for the time being. While Carpenter has been a notoriously slow starter in several seasons during his career and most recently dug himself out of a similar hole in 2018, he has experienced some regression in key areas thus far this season. Langosch notes the infielder's barrel rate is down from last year's 13.7 percent to 8.3 percent, while his hard-contact rate is down a full 10 percentage points to 34.7 percent.

Carpenter is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

EDGE Analysis

With a lefty (Steven Brault) on the mound for Pittsburgh and the Cardinals playing a day game after a night game, manager Mike Shildt evidently viewed it as an opportune time to give Carpenter just his third day off of the season. Carpenter, who went 0-for-9 over the first two games of the series, will be replaced at third base by Jedd Gyorko.

Carpenter went 2-for-4 with an RBI single, two walks and three runs in a win over the Pirates on Thursday.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter helped set the table from his leadoff spot in an offensive extravaganza for the Cardinals. The veteran infielder is hitting a modest .250 across the first nine games of May, but that still represents a notable uptick for him. Carpenter's average sat at .190 after he started the month with an 0-for-12 tally over the first three contests, but he's bounced back by going 8-for-24 with a home run, four RBI, four walks and five runs over the subsequent six outings.