How the St. Louis Cardinals’ rotation has stepped up

The St. Louis Cardinals’ rotation has stepped up in a big way during the 16-game winning streak.

Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Tyler O’Neill and Harrison Bader have garnered most of the attention during the St. Louis Cardinals’ historic 16-game win streak. But the rotation has stepped up in a massive way and been what’s made such a stretch possible.

In the last 15 games, Miles Mikolas has a 3.06 ERA in three starts. J.A. Happ has a 2.03 ERA in three starts. Jake Woodford has a 2.00 ERA in two starts. Jon Lester has a 3.71 ERA in three starts. Adam Wainwright, the teams unquestioned best starter this season, has a team-worst 3.94 ERA in three starts.

The Cardinals could not have asked for anything more from this unit, especially Mikolas, Happ and Lester. At one point, it appeared that Mikolas may not pitch this season after suffering a setback in his recovery from shoulder and elbow injuries, but he has been terrific lately, with his seven inning and two run performance against the Milwaukee Brewers being his best start since he won 18 games in 2019.

With Lester and Happ, they have benefitted from a Cardinals defense that is easily the best in baseball. There is no refuting that. Both pitchers, however, have performed meaningfully better than they did with their previous teams and have made their once depleted rotation into a strength. Of course, Lester is battling an undisclosed injury, though the team is optimistic that he will be fine.

The Cardinals traded for Lester and Happ to fill out their rotation and to eat innings to avoid taxing an already gassed bullpen. Instead, the moves have significantly contributed to not just saving their season, but giving manager Mike Shildt options and ample depth headed into the postseason with Jack Flaherty returning off the injured list.

A lot has gone into the Cardinals’ playoff surge, with the offense rightfully garnering most of the attention. But such a stretch would not be possible without the rotation and it’s time they start getting the recognition they’ve earned.