Cardinals: Biggest X-Factors for Game 2 against the Phillies

Jun 14, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) salutes the fans after pitching 8 2/3 inning and giving up one hit in a victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 14, 2022; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (39) salutes the fans after pitching 8 2/3 inning and giving up one hit in a victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
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St. Louis Cardinals Paul Goldschmidt
Paul Goldschmidt #46 of the St. Louis Cardinals at bat during Game One of the NL Wild Card series against the Philadelphia Phillies. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Paul Goldschmidt

The catalyst of the Cardinals offense all season and likely the National League Most Valuable Player, Paul Goldschmidt must get his bat going again in Game 2, or the chances for success for St. Louis greatly diminishes.

In a great breakdown of how the Cardinals have found their success in 2022, Ben Remis pointed out that St. Louis is 35-14 in games where Goldschmidt has multiple hits. Goldschmidt has been dominant in 2022, slashing .317/.404/.578 with 35 HR and 115 RBI in 151 games.

The months of September and August have been a struggle for Goldschmidt though. The Cardinals slugger has seem his numbers drop to .245/.333/.383 with just 2 HR and 10 RBI in 27 games played. If St. Louis is going to do damage against Aaron Nola on Saturday, Goldschmidt will need to be a part of that action. He is currently slotted between Pujols and Arenado, meaning he is consistently at the plate with runners on base and in front of another RBI machine.

October is when legends rise to the occasion, and St. Louis will hope that the bright lights bring out the best in their best player.

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