6 takeaways from Cardinals series sweep of Diamondbacks

Dakota Hudson and Jordan Hicks are not looking great

Dakota Hudson is struggling mightily this season. It’s to the point it is curious how much longer he will be in the starting rotation.

Hudson struggled through 4.1 innings Saturday, giving up five hits, three walks, and four earned runs. He did strike out four batters while inducing seven swings and misses.

Hudson is a promising arm that can induce groundball-outs. He, unfortunately, has struggled to do that this season. With the acquisitions of Jordan Montgomery and Jose Quintana and the expected return of Jack Flaherty and possibly Steven Matz at some point,  Hudson could be relegated to another role on the team.

Jordan Hicks threw to four batters in the eighth inning. And it was hard to watch. He gave up three hits, a walk, and three runs, including a home run to Jake McCarthy.

Hicks did have a good outing on Friday, pitching the ninth. He gave up two hits but struck out three batters, inducing six swings and misses. He reached a max velocity of 103.7 mph. The speeds he can achieve are incredible when he is pitching effectively.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem Hicks can be counted to hit the mound on successive days.