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St. Louis Cardinals: Two Month Review

By Steven McNeil |
May 31, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Jedd Gyorko (3) is greeted by Kolten Wong (16) and Yadier Molina (4) after hitting a 3-run homer in the eighth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. The Cardinal beat the Brewers 10-3. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
May 31, 2016; Milwaukee, WI, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Jedd Gyorko (3) is greeted by Kolten Wong (16) and Yadier Molina (4) after hitting a 3-run homer in the eighth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. The Cardinal beat the Brewers 10-3. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-USA TODAY Sports
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May 20, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz (36) hits a one run single off of Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Tyler Clippard (not pictured) during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. The Diamondbacks won 11-7. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
May 20, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz (36) hits a one run single off of Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Tyler Clippard (not pictured) during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. The Diamondbacks won 11-7. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /

After tonight, the St. Louis Cardinals will have played two months worth of baseball. What have we learned about this team so far?

In two months time, we have learned a lot about this St. Louis Cardinals’ team. Many would tell you that this is exactly what they expected – an average team that shows flashes of being really good but not great. However, I want to explore what we know about this team so far.

Surprisingly Potent but Inconsistent Offense

If you would have told me on April 3 that the Cardinals would be sitting in the top ten in the MLB in all three slash categories (AVG, OBP, SLG), I would have gladly taken it. Especially considering they are in the top five in OBP and SLG.

Unfortunately, this has been inconsistent. More often than not, we see the Cardinals score six runs plus in their victories. However, it is just as common to see the team score 1-3 runs in their losses.

While the offense has been largely inconsistent, there have been some pleasant surprises. Matt Adams is sporting a 147 wRC+ with 15 extra base-hits (6 Homers and 9 Doubles), Aledmys Diaz has surpassed all expectations (even mine) with a fantastic slash of .328/.361/.539 with 23 extra base-hits (7 Homers, 15 Doubles, 1 Triple).

However, Randal Grichuk is one of the players I expected to break out this season and to this day Grichuk is hitting .225 with a 91 wRC+ despite his 10 extra base-hits (7 Homers, 8 Doubles, 2 Triples). While Grichuk is having a bit of bad luck with his BABIP, this performance needs to get better.

Matt Carpenter and Matt Holliday are rounding into their normal form and could be cogs in helping the team become more consistent offensively. With the return of Jhonny Peralta and the potential arrival of Tommy Pham things could get even better.

However, it won’t change the need for the offense to be more consistent to challenge for a playoff spot this year.

Next: Rotation Not Immune to Inconsistencies

May 24, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Michael Wacha (52) leaves the game in the fourth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
May 24, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Michael Wacha (52) leaves the game in the fourth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

Underperforming Rotation

Had I known this offense was as potent as it has been, I probably would assume that this team was right at the top of the standings. However, that’s taking into account the rotation at least looking close to the way it did last season.

However, over the course of the 54 games this season, the rotation only has 29 quality starts. Adam Wainwright has not been his consistent self and has struggled to find consistency on a weekly basis as he has an ERA of 5.71 so far this season.

Along with Wainwright’s struggles, every other member of the rotation has had their inconsistencies as well. Carlos Martinez just shook off a rough stretch of five games that saw him go 0-5 with an ERA of 6.84 during that stretch. For more on why Martinez could be on the uptick check out Viva el Birdos writer Joe Schwarz’s piece.

Jaime Garcia has been as off and on as you can be with his 3.48 ERA. Michael Wacha had a great start to the season and seemed to be putting his issues behind him, but his command of his fastball and lack of confidence in his curveball has caused a litany of issues for the right-hander in his last five starts.

In these last five starts, Wacha has an ERA of 8.63. His FIP of 3.74 and opponents BABIP of .381 suggests that there is a lot of luck involved here. However, it is quite clear that this is a result of Wacha’s fastball catching far too much of the zone.

After having a rough start to the season, Mike Leake has turned it around by allowing a total of six earned runs in his last five starts. So, while things look grim for the rotation there is hope that it could be on the verge of turning things around.

If the rotation can turn things around and the offense adds a smidge more consistency, we could see things start to turn around for this team.

Next: Up and Down Bullpen

May 1, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Seung Hwan Oh (26) pitches to a Washington Nationals batter during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. The Nationals won 6-1 and completed the sweep of the Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
May 1, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Seung Hwan Oh (26) pitches to a Washington Nationals batter during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. The Nationals won 6-1 and completed the sweep of the Cardinals. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /

Bullpen Good and Bad

While we thought the ‘pen was going to be an anchor for the Cards. The inconsistencies haven’t avoided the pen either, as while Seung-hwan Oh, Kevin Siegrist, and Trevor Rosenthal have been great, the others have not been. Tyler Lyons, Seth Maness, Dean Kiekhefer, and Jonathan Broxton all have ERAs above 4.00. 

More from Adam Wainwright

It is easy to see that this team is simply struggling with inconsistencies across the board. However, I believe that as the season progresses, we will see some more consistency with this team. I feel as if guys like Kolten Wong and Randal Grichuk will see things improve and we should see improvements from Adam Wainwright.

If the Cardinals can count on one other starting pitcher every fifth day to have a consistent outing, things could turn around for this team and we could see them get on a roll. However, they are going to have to prove it against some of the better teams in the league with games against the Giants, Pirates, Astros, Rangers, Cubs, and Royals in June.

Next: Cardinals' Infield Continues to Shuffle

This very well could be a make or break month for this team. If they come away with a strong month and get a little more than two wins above .500 they could reestablish themselves as legitimate contenders. However, another mediocre month would create even more questions as this team approaches the July 31st Trade Deadline.

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