Martinez pitched six shutout innings, allowing eight hits and one walk while striking out three but took the no-decision in an extra inning loss to the Royals on Wednesday.
Cardinals manager Mike Matheny pulled Martinez after he allowed a leadoff single in the seventh. A Royals batter reached base in every inning against Martinez, but he worked out of every jam, as he stranded nine base runners. Martinez is 7-5 with a 2.83 ERA and 1.11 WHIP, but his strikeouts have significantly decreased compared to last season. While in 2015 he posted a 9.2 K/9 ratio, Martinez has 73 strikeouts in 95.1 innings this season. Wednesday was his fourth straight start with at least 12 ground ball outs. Martinez will make his next start Monday against the Pirates.