Cardinals fans must root for weather to ruin Jacob Misiorowski's All-Star case

The St. Louis Cardinals only managed to get one player into the All-Star Game, and even his announcement was somewhat ruined thanks to a gaffe by the city of Philadelphia. Jordan Walker is more than deserving of the honor, of course, but it's still upsetting to see no one else from one of MLB's most surprising first-half teams get the nod.

Alas, it's an exhibition game at the end of the day. What really matters is the Redbirds' ability to keep winning the games that count in the standings, like their insanely crucial five-game set against the Milwaukee Brewers this week.

By winning recent series against the Braves and Cubs, the Cardinals have put themselves in excellent position to close out the first half on a high note. However, they'll draw the NL Central's best team this week (before another series with the Braves), which also means they'll have to face one of the best pitchers in baseball: Jacob Misiorowski.

Unless, of course, inclement weather plays its part.

Weather will only take Cardinals so far in all-important NL Central clash with Brewers

The weather in St. Louis this week looks rather ominous; there are chances of thunderstorms every day until the weekend. That could play a big role in the Brewers series, seeing as there's already one doubleheader scheduled for Tuesday.

Misiorowski is slated to start the Tuesday afternoon game, so it's almost certain that he'll take a start in this series. However, he made it clear to Bob Nightengale that he wants to pitch in the All-Star Game this year and is hoping for some rain this week to keep him rested in advance of the Midsummer Classic.

The Brewers obviously have no obligation to fulfill his wishes, but if they push his start back due to weather, then that could give the Cardinals a far more favorable matchup. Oliver Marmol hasn't announced his probable starters for the series beyond Dustin May for game one, but some have speculated that Hunter Dobbins could be recalled as the 27th man for the doubleheader to start against Misiorowski.

Instead, if delays occur, perhaps St. Louis could counter Miz with Michael McGreevy or Andre Pallante. That'd still be a pitching matchup disadvantage -- there are very few pitchers on earth better than Misiorowski -- but it would be a less prominent gap to deal with.

Regardless of whether or not the Gateway City skies cooperate, this is perhaps the most important five-game stretch facing this team this season. At 47-40, the Cardinals are in position to land an NL Wild Card spot. If they can take this extended series against the Brewers, perhaps an unforeseen run at the NL Central could also be in play.

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