The Cardinals' woes with runners in scoring position is costing them a playoff spot

Back in May, the St. Louis Cardinals lacked consistency driving in runners in scoring position. The Cardinals were one of the league’s worst teams in cashing in RISP. Yesterday’s loss to the New York Mets and a series loss at Wrigley Field to the underachieving Chicago Cubs showcased a problem that is starting to dog on the Cardinals once again. Not only have the Cardinals been bland on offense all around, but this team cannot capitalize on runners in scoring position.

Through all five games this month, the Cardinals' offense has been one of the worst. The Cardinals enter Tuesday with a .266 OBP, a .258 wOBA, and a paltry 67 wRC+ this month. It gets worse with runners in scoring position.

Yesterday, the Cardinals went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position. With three hits in 32 ABs with RISP in August, that equals a .094 AVG this month, which is good for dead last in Major League Baseball. It adds to what has already been a bad year for the Cardinals with RISP, where St. Louis ranks 27th this season with a .232 AVG and averages 3.48 runners left in scoring position.

Nolan Arenado, whose body language has been a recent topic as of late, is responsible for two of those hits in the Chicago series. However, Arenado’s game-tying hit in the eighth inning was assisted by Pete Crow-Armstrong’s failure to catch a rather routine fly ball in center field. Batters such as Nolan Gorman, Paul Goldschmidt, and Willson Contreras have failed to collect one base hit this month with a runner in scoring position.

The clock is ticking on the 2024 St. Louis Cardinals. This team currently sits four games behind Mike Shildt’s San Diego Padres for the third Wild Card spot and six games back behind the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the National League Central. If this team wants any shot at the playoffs, they need more from their lineup with RISP.