St. Louis Cardinals Need to Win Game 3

The St. Louis Cardinals are not in the position that they would like to be in entering a crucial NLDS Game 3. However, the situation could be much, much worse.
Sep 17, 2013; Denver, CO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Joe Kelly (58) watches from the dugout during the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Image Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports
The Cardinals are sending Joe Kelly to the mound on Sunday afternoon against Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Francisco Liriano. Liriano is 3-0 with a 0.75 ERA against the Cards this year so Kelly needs to help put the Cardinals in a position to take Game 3. The offense needs to come out banging like they did in Thursday’s postseason opener, too.

What does not help the Cardinals on Sunday and Monday is their record this season at PNC Park. The Cardinals are 3-7 this season at the stadium.

“Every time we face somebody, if we haven’t learned something or put together a better propose, than shame on us,” manager Mike Matheny said in an MLB.com article. “The guys have worked hard to try and get ahead of it and try and figure out ways, and we’re going to continue to do so. We have a game plan we’ll take into tomorrow.”

Some stats at PNC do not bode well for St. Louis. In ten games this season, the Pirates have hit 7 home runs while the Cards have not hit any. The Pirates have hit .275 while the Cards have a .226 batting average. It gets worse with pitching. The Cardinals own a 5.04 ERA while the Pirates own a 3.18 ERA. It would be better if the Cardinals had the better numbers.

A win on Sunday afternoon would set up a potential series clincher on Monday afternoon with Michael Wacha starting for the Cards against Charlie Morton.