St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez will not make his scheduled start Tuesday against the Washington Nationals because of a back injury, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez will not make his scheduled start Tuesday against the Washington Nationals because of a back injury, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The back issue is believed to be minor, but the team will not take a chance on the right-hander's health with the division lead comfortably in hand.

Martinez (13-6) hurled a quality start against the Diamondbacks on Thursday, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks over six innings while striking out six in a 5-3 win.

Martinez allowed all four hits and all three runs in the second inning, but settled down big time after that, retiring 12 straight batters. The young Dominican has had a fantastic season, but has been regressing over his last six starts. Martinez has allowed at least three runs in five of his last six starts and he has already surpassed his career-high in innings pitched. This is natural for a youngster who has not thrown this much and it seems likely this will be the pitcher we see for the rest of the season rather than the first half All-Star candidate. He'll look to be more consistent in his next start on Tuesday against the Nationals.

Martinez was let down by his defense Sunday, allowing five runs (one earned) on seven hits and no walks while striking out five across five innings against Miami.

A Derek Dietrich two-out triple cleared the bases several batters after the Cardinals should have been out of the inning. It's a frustrating outing for Martinez as he pitched fairly well and only threw 74 pitches. He should be well rested, and a great option in fantasy leagues, in his next start in San Diego.

Martinez improved to 12-4 Tuesday against the Pirates as he threw eight innings and allowed three runs on nine hits. He struck out eight and didn't walk a batter.

Without the pristine control, Martinez may not have been able to scatter those nine hits. It's just the second time Martinez hasn't walked a batter all season, and he gave up five runs on 10 hits over five innings in the last one (July 30 against Colorado). It's a good sign to see Martinez able to keep hitters off balance while pounding the zone so hard, even if his ERA did rise to 2.62.

Martinez didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against Cincinnati, allowing three runs (one earned) on six hits and three walks while striking out four in five innings of work.

Martinez hasn't been as dominate in his last two starts and its possible fatigue is beginning to set in as he's already eclipsed his highest innings total in a season as a professional.

Martinez gave up five runs on 10 hits in six innings Thursday against the Rockies. He struck out six in the no-decision.

Martinez was due for a rough outing, as he had been scorching hot coming into this one. His 1.13 ERA since May 20 was the best among pitchers with at least 10 starts in that span, and he was limiting opponents to a .122 batting average with runners in scoring position. Over his last five starts, opponents had gone 1-for-23 in those situations. Martinez allowed more than three runs for the first time in 14 starts, so he'll look to bounce back in his next scheduled start Wednesday at Cincinnati.

Martinez (11-4) tossed eight scoreless innings Saturday, allowing six hits and recording six strikeouts.

Martinez's spectacular season continued Saturday evening as the 23-year-old shut the Braves down. He hasn't allowed more than one earned run in over a month, and his 2.34 ERA is at its lowest mark since the end of April. With five wins in his last six outings, Martinez has been a rock for the Cardinals all season long.

Martinez suffered his fourth loss of the season Sunday against the Mets, allowing two runs on five hits and four walks in four innings of relief.

The game went 18 innings and Martinez was called into action with the bullpen stretched. He needed 72 pitches to battle through four frames and will almost certainly miss his scheduled start Tuesday against the White Sox. The Cardinals should have a plan in place regarding Martinez's next start in the early portion of this coming week.

Martinez (10-3) scattered four hits while striking out five and walking three in 7.1 scoreless innings Thursday against the Pirates.

With Wednesday's win, Martinez improved to 7-1 with a 1.20 ERA in his last 10 starts. The right-hander, who is one of the five players contending for the NL's All-Star Final Vote, made his case for inclusion on the National League All-Star team, as the Cardinals beat the Pirates in a matchup between the teams with the best records in the major leagues.

Martinez turned in a quality start Saturday, allowing just one run on eight hits and two walks over 6.2 innings, striking out five.

He walked away with a no-decision, but Martinez has now reeled off nine straight QS and is establishing himself as a integral part of the Cardinals' rotation. His next start comes Thursday in Pittsburgh.

Martinez earned his ninth win of the season Sunday against the Cubs, allowing just one run with six strikeouts in six innings.

The 23-year-old needed just 84 pitches in this strong outing and probably would have gone deeper into the game if not for a pair of rain delays. Martinez has now thrown eight consecutive quality starts and will carry a 2.80 ERA into Saturday's start against the Padres.

Martinez (shoulder) will make his scheduled start Sunday against the Cubs.

Martinez was experiencing some soreness with his right (throwing) shoulder following Tuesday's win over the Marlins, but the issue seemed to fade away after a couple days off. The 23-year-old isn't expected to face any restrictions in Sunday's turn and could be in for a big day against the Cubs, who have the majors' second-highest strikeout percentage (24.4%).

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez will make his scheduled start against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday, despite dealing with some soreness in his shoulder during the week, according to the team's official website.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez will make his scheduled start against the Chicago Cubs on Sunday, despite dealing with some soreness in his shoulder during the week, according to the team's official website. Martinez is not expected to have any restrictions during Sunday's nationally-televised game.

Martinez had some slight bruising and soreness on his right shoulder after taking a fastball in Tuesday's win over Miami, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Martinez admitted that the shoulder tightened up the following inning but that the tightness had faded the following day. Something for owners to keep an eye but he seems unlikely to miss any starts.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez has some slight bruising and soreness on his right shoulder after getting hit by a 94-mph fastball while batting Tuesday against the Miami Marlins, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Carlos Martinez has some slight bruising and soreness on his right shoulder after getting hit by a 94-mph fastball while batting Tuesday against the Miami Marlins, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Martinez's shoulder tightened up after the game, but Wednesday he said it felt better. He is not expected to miss a start. Martinez was hit as he squared to bunt in the seventh inning. Martinez has thrown 87.1 innings in 15 starts and will set a career high in his next appearance after tossing 89.1 frames last year. According to Fox Sports, the team is confident Martinez can work at least 170 innings this season. His current workload puts him on pace to top 190 innings -- and that is before consider any post-season work. Martinez is 8-3 with a 2.89 ERA and 94 strikeouts.

Martinez gave up three runs on eight hits and one walk while fanning nine in seven innings Tuesday against the Marlins.

He settled down after giving up three runs in the first 1.1 innings, including a two-run blast to Giancarlo Stanton. Martinez also took a 94-mph fastball to the right shoulder while trying to bunt in the seventh inning and was able to return to retire his final three batters in the bottom of the frame. The 23-year-old righty has now won five of his last seven decisions and will look to improve upon a stellar 8-3 record in his next start Sunday against the Cubs.

Martinez (7-3) gave up two runs -- one earned -- on five hits and three walks while striking out six in 6.2 innings Wednesday against the Twins.

Martinez's three game win streak was snapped, but he did produce his sixth straight quality start. For the season, Martinez has a 2.80 ERA and a 9.65 K/9. His next start will be Tuesday at Miami.

Martinez (7-2) turned in 6.1 strong innings Wednesday in Colorado, giving up two runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out four.

He was working on a shutout before Ben Paulsen hit a two-run homer off him in the seventh, ending an excellent afternoon at the typically hitter-friendly Coors for the young fireballer. After a couple bad outings took the shine off his strong start to the year, Martinez has really found his stride, as he's given up just three runs while striking out 36 in in his last 33.2 innings. He'll toe the rubber again Tuesday against the Twins.

Martinez (6-2) dominated the Dodgers on Friday, striking out 11 while allowing one run over seven innings. He gave up just three hits and walked four.

Martinez was unable to extend his streak of scoreless outings to four, but dominated the Los Angeles lineup for the second consecutive start. Los Angeles will be glad to see the last of him. The only knock on Martinez at this point is his walk rate, which remains scarily high -- you can afford to walk 31 hitters in 67.1 innings when the league's hitting just .215 against you, but that luck's going to balance out a little. Still, Martinez has as much upside as any pitcher in the game. He'll make his next start in Colorado, so owners will want to exercise caution.

Martinez was brilliant Sunday in leading the Cardinals to the series win over the Dodgers, throwing seven shutout innings while surrendering single to Andre Ethier and striking out eight.

That makes back-to-back starts with seven shutout innings and eight strikeouts. Martinez hasn't surrendered a run in 21 consecutive innings, spanning more than three starts. The 23-year-old flamethrower looks as good, and maybe even better than advertised.