St. Louis Cardinals on verge of being swept by the Pittsburgh Pirates

The St. Louis Cardinals were shut out 5-0 by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday night and fell 7-1 tonight. Without a doubt, it can be said that the Pirates are the Cardinals’ kryptonite this season. The Cardinals have lost 10 of 15 to the Bucs. Making matters worse, the team has been outscored 73-54 this season against Pittsburgh.
Aug 31, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Lance Lynn (31) delivers a pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the second inning at PNC Park. Image Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Lance Lynn finished the month of August with the same troubles that bothered him in the second half last year. This month, the pitcher is 1-4 with a 5.84 ERA. Last August, Lynn was 0-1 with a 6.66 ERA in 5 starts and 2 other appearances. This will be troubling for the Cardinals down the stretch.

Lynn bought the bullpen some time by making it to the 4th inning but the damage was already done after allowing 10 hits, 7 runs, 3 walks, and striking out 4 batters. Lynn allowed a 3-run home run to Russell Martin in a 5-run inning.

The Cardinals were limited to 6 hits on Saturday night. Allen Craig had two of them. Kolten Wong scored on an RBI single from Carlos Beltran.

On Friday night, Shelby Miller was pulled in the 5th inning after allowing 8 hits and 5 runs. The pitcher walked 3 and struck out 3 batters. The bullpen combined to finish out the game with a one-hitter.

While the Cardinals acquired John Axford for the final month of the season, the rotation needs some stability to be shown.