5 best St. Louis Cardinals starting pitchers since 1967

ST LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Former pitcher Bob Gibson, former pitcher Bruce Sutter and Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals throw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to Game One of the MLB World Series against the Texas Rangers at Busch Stadium on October 19, 2011 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
ST LOUIS, MO - OCTOBER 19: (L-R) Former pitcher Bob Gibson, former pitcher Bruce Sutter and Adam Wainwright of the St. Louis Cardinals throw out the ceremonial first pitch prior to Game One of the MLB World Series against the Texas Rangers at Busch Stadium on October 19, 2011 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /
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St. Louis Cardinals
ST LOUIS, MO – MAY 04: The game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Mets at Busch Stadium on May 4, 2021 in St Louis, Missouri was postponed due to rain. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on May 05, 2021. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images) /

4. Steve Carlton

It was in Philadelphia that Steve Carlton won three Cy Young Awards and became a baseball legend. Before his infamous trade to the Phillies on February 26, 1972, he was a pretty good doggone pitcher for the Cardinals.

The Cardinals signed the lefty in 1963 and he quickly advanced through their minor-league system. Carlton made his major-league debut in 1965, but he really started to come on his own during the 1967 World Championship season when he went 14-9 with a 2.98 ERA in 193 innings. While he didn’t win his one start in the 1967 World Series, he pitched 6 strong innings and gave up one unearned run.

In 1968, Carlton pitched 232 innings, posting a 13-11 record, a 2.99 ERA and made his first All-Star appearance. In 1969, he went 17-11 with a 2.19 ERA, pitched 236 innings and made his second All-Star appearance.

However, Carlton’s best year in St. Louis turned out to be his last. In 1971, he went 20-9 in 273 innings with a 3.56 ERA and made a third All-Star appearance.

In his seven seasons with the Cardinals, Carlton had a 77-62 record with a 3.10 ERA and a 114 ERA+. During his tenure in St. Louis, he also had 66 complete games and 16 shutouts.

Oh, what could’ve been.