2013 St. Louis Cardinals

[Migrant Redbird]

Adam Wainwright's not bad either.

Cardinals starters have now dealt the National League's top run-scoring team two consecutive complete game shutouts.

Wainwright retired the first 13 batters he faced today before surrendering a walk, making a total of 40 outs in a row by the Rockies hitters against Miller and Wainwright. Adam lost his no-hitter in the 8th and gave up another single in the 9th, but still recorded the complete game on 115 pitches, 2 more than Miller required the day before.

The Cardinals are the only team in baseball with a staff ERA under 3.00, and that's despite having the highest bullpen ERA (5.14). However, the Cards relievers have pitched the fewest innings of any in baseball, only 84.0. Moreover, of the 51 runs allowed by the bullpen, 23 were allowed by pitchers now pitching in AAA. Their rookie replacements -- Seth Maness and Carlos Martinez, have made 5 appearances, pitched 5-1/3 innings, and have only allowed 2 hits, no walks, and no runs.

The ERA for the starters is only 2.20, a full run better than the next best team, the Tigers.

After Miller (5-2, 1.58) and Wainwright (5-2, 2.30) you have Jaime Garcia (4-1, 2.25), Lance Lynn (5-1, 2.72), and Jake Westbrook (2-1, 1.62). The bullpen has 7 blown saves, or those stats would be even gaudier.

[OFFNY]

.

Back-to-back Complete-Game Shutouts for Shelby Miller and Adam Wainwright.

ADAM WAINWRIGHT O (vs. THE ROCKIES, 5/11)

IP:. 9 O(Complete Game Shutout)

H:o 2

R:O 0

BB: 1

SO: 7

Pitches: 120 (88 Strikes, 32 Balls)

2012 ERA: 2.30

[Migrant Redbird]

Last winter, the Cards thought they had enough pitching depth in their system to let Kyle Lohse, arguably their best pitcher in 2012, depart as a free agent.

So far this season, Lohse has faced the Cards 3 times. The first 2 times, he was beaten by rookie Shelby Miller. Today, he was beaten by rookie John Gast, who is now 2-0 with a 4.76 ERA after being promoted from AAA Memphis when Jake Westbrook went on the DL.

Gast, a southpaw, had a 0.00 ERA at Memphis in April. Since then, he's given up 6 runs before being called up and 8 runs in his 2 starts at the major league level, but the Cards offense has scored just enough to make him a winner.

With Jaime Garcia's shoulder trouble recurring, possibly ending his career, the Cards are bringing up left hander Tyler Lyons (2-1, 4.47) to take Garcia's turn in the rotation. Lyons is not one of the Cards' highly touted pitching prospects, but Wednesday would have been his regular start at Memphis. He'll probably make a couple starts until Jake Westbrook comes off the DL in a week or two.

The Cardinals do have a plethora of other rotation candidates -- Joe Kelly and Trevor Rosenthal were passed over in spring training in favor of Miller for the 5th starter position; Seth Maness and Carlos Martinez were successful starters at AAA and AA respectively; uber prospect Michael Wacha is 4-0 with a 1.89 in 8 starts for Memphis. But Rosenthal, Maness, and Martinez are now in the Cards bullpen and not stretched out to be a starter and Kelly has been ineffective in sporadic use as a long reliever. Wacha's 8 starts at AAA are his only starts as a professional since he was drafted last year.

The Cards hitting is starting to come around. The team BA in April was only .245, but the BA/RISP was the best in baseball, compensating for the early hitting struggles. In May so far, they're hitting .298 and still getting clutch hits.

Pete Kozma continues to confound the "experts" who proclaimed him incapable of being a major league regular, based on his poor minor league record (.236/.308/.344/.652). So far, through 255 ML PAs, he's hitting .280/.340/.396/.735. In the series the Cards swept from the Nats, Nats broadcasters were referring to him as "Pete Rose Kozma". He's started all but 2 games at shortstop and made only 1 error. Ozzie Smith he's not, but he's been steady and made most of the plays he should without getting much highlight reel time.

Many Cards fans were highly critical of Tony La Russa for trying to turn Skip Schumaker from a utility outfielder into a second baseman. This year, Matt Carpenter, a third baseman who's also played both corner outfield positions, has gotten the majority of starts at second. My observation is that he's been pretty steady there -- so far. In addition, he's moved into the lead off role for the Cardinals and is hitting .317/.417/.427/.843 in that role this year.

With a 28-15 record, the Cards are tied with the Rangers for the best record in baseball. They've weathered the loss of Chris Carpenter, Rafael Furcal, Jason Motte, and DL stints by David Freese, Westbrook, and Matt Adams, so far without hardly skipping a beat. I'm always reluctant to wax optimistic because I know how quickly the fortunes of a baseball team can turn, but it's difficult not to be with how well the 2013 Cardinals season is shaping up. I keep reminding myself that weaker teams in 2006 and 2011 have outperformed much stronger teams in 2004, 2005, and 2012.

[Migrant Redbird]

Featured on the June Sports Illustrated cover:

Is the SI cover jinx alive and well? Since that cover photo was taken, Jake Westbrook and Jaime Garcia have gone on the DL. Jaime just had shoulder surgery. The Cards are hoping he'll be ready for the 2014 season, but the track record for pitchers with shoulder surgery isn't very promising.

However, the organizational depth is filling the gaps, so far:

Rooke John Gast starts against the Dodgers today. He's 2-0 since being called up from Memphis.

Tyler Lyons was a surprise callup to replace Garcia in the rotation. He pitched 7 innings in his major league debut, surrendering only a solo home run in the 7th in San Diego. He got great offensive support -- Lyons actually had his first major league at bat before he threw his first major league pitch -- and he is 1 for 3 so far at the plate.

[Migrant Redbird]

Injury Update

   Cardinals             Status        Due Back              Injury  NotesFurcal, Rafael (SS)  Out for Season  2014            Underwent Tommy John surgery March 13.Carpenter, Chris (P) 60-day DL       Possibly June   Thoracic outlet syndrome  Throwing program slowed down                                                     after arm did not respond well to May 23 bullpen session.Westbrook, Jake (P)  15-day DL       TBD             Right elbow inflammation  Playing catch on flat ground as of May 25;                                                     expected to visit Dr, James Andrews on May 28.Garcia, Jaime (P)    Out for Season  2014            Recovery from May 2013 successful debridement of left shoulder labrum                                                    and rotator cuff May 24.Gast, John (P)       15-day DL  TBD                  Left shoulder strain  Placed on 15-day DL on May 26.Motte, Jason (P)     Out for Season  2014            Recovery from May 2013 Tommy John surgery Beltran, Carlos (RF) Any day         Day-to-day      Left shoulder soreness  Not in starting lineup May 26.

Not many teams could have lost 3/5 of their projected 2013 starting rotation, plus their closer who led the league in saves in 2012, and still managed to have the best record in baseball on Memorial Day.

In addition, starting 3rd baseman, David Freese, began the season on the DL and is just now starting to get his hitting stroke back. Backup 1st baseman, Matt Adams, was on the DL for 15 days and hasn't gotten back on track yet. He hit .542/.593/1.042/1.634 in April, only .222/.222/.222/.444 in 18 PAs since his return.

[Migrant Redbird]

.

OOOBy the way, they Royals were 10-0 this season when getting 12 or more hits in a game ...... until today.

The Cardinals broadcasters were complaining about the plate umpire's strike zone during the game. Wainwright didn't walk anyone, but Shields walked 5, the first time this season that he's walked more than 3. In Wainwright's case, the tight strike zone was reflected in 12 hits, his highest of the season.

In Wainwright's defense, the Royals did get an unusually large number of lucky hits. Two fly balls ended up in the Bermuda Triangle between 2nd base, CF, and LF, while another ground ball would have been fielded by the 1st baseman for an out but it hit the bag and bounced about 12 feet over his head for a double.

[Migrant Redbird]

The Cardinals Disability List this season.

   Cardinals             Status        Due Back              Injury  NotesFurcal, Rafael (SS)  Out for Season  2014            Underwent Tommy John surgery March 13.Carpenter, Chris (P) 60-day DL       Possibly June   Thoracic outlet syndrome  Throwing program slowed down                                                     after arm did not respond well to May 23 bullpen session.Westbrook, Jake (P)  15-day DL       TBD             Right elbow inflammation  Playing catch on flat ground as of May 25;                                                     expected to visit Dr, James Andrews on May 28.Garcia, Jaime (P)    Out for Season  2014            Recovery from May 2013 successful debridement of left shoulder labrum                                                    and rotator cuff May 24.Gast, John (P)       15-day DL  TBD                  Left shoulder strain  Placed on 15-day DL on May 26.Motte, Jason (P)     Out for Season  2014            Recovery from May 2013 Tommy John surgery Beltran, Carlos (RF) Any day         Day-to-day      Left shoulder soreness  Not in starting lineup May 26.

Despite losing 3/5 of the starting rotation and their closer, the pitching depth in the Cardinals organization has enabled them to post the best record in baseball as of 29 May, despite playing in arguably the strongest division in baseball (based on the first third of the 2013 season).

MLB TEAM       W  L  PCT  GB   HOME ROAD    RS  RA DIFF  STRK   L10Cardinals     34 17 .667   -   14-8  20-9  243 171  +72 Won 3   7-3Reds          33 19 .635  1.5  20-7  13-12 253 183  +70 Won 2   8-2Pirates       32 20 .615  2.5  18-9  14-11 203 177  +26 Won 1   7-3Rangers       32 20 .615  2.5  15-7  17-13 241 190  +51 Lost 3  5-5Braves        31 20 .608  3    15-5  16-15 229 184  +45 Won 1   8-2Red Sox       32 21 .604  3    17-12 15-9  262 218  +44 Lost 1  6-4Yankees       30 21 .588  4    15-9  15-12 213 191  +22 Lost 3  5-5Tigers        29 21 .580  4.5  17-9  12-12 265 199  +66 Lost 1  6-4Diamondbacks  30 22 .577  4.5  16-12 14-10 215 189  +26 Won 3   6-4Athletics     30 23 .566  5    15-10 15-13 251 225  +26 Won 5   9-1Orioles       28 24 .538  6.5  11-12 17-12 262 246  +16 Lost 1  5-5

While the Reds and Pirates are nipping at the Cards' heels, the Cards have played a stronger schedule. ESPN RPI, sorted by SOS (The poor Brewers had the strongest early schedule, followed by the Blue Jays and Giants.)

The rookies promoted to fill in for injured pitchers have all performed remarkably well, validating Baseball America's assessment of the Cardinals organization as the best in baseball. (John Gast exited after the first inning of his 3rd start with pain in his shoulder.)

Rookie Pitchers  Age  W  L   ERA   G  GS  CG  SHO  IP    ER  HR  BB  SO   HBP   WHIP Shelby Miller     22  5  3  2.02  10  10   1   1  62.1   14   4  16  65   3    0.979John Gast (LH)    24  2  0  5.11   3   3   0   0  12.1    7   1   5   8   0    1.297Carlos Martinez   21  0  0  4.50   7   0   0   0   8.0    4   0   3   9   2    1.500Tyler Lyons (LH)  25  1  0  1.29   1   1   0   0   7.0    1   1   1   4   0    0.714

Now it's time for the Wacha Express.

The Cardinals would prefer to keep first-year pro Michael Wacha in the minors for a majority of this season, but a rash of injuries to starters has left them with no choice and one dazzling pitching prospect.

He is their best available option.

Only 11 months, 29 days removed from his final pitch as Texas A&M?s ace, Wacha will make his major-league debut Thursday as a starter for the Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

... ?People have to keep in mind that a year ago this kid was in the collegiate playoffs,? manager Mike Matheny said. ?That?s a rather drastic jump. But he?s earned it. He?s proved that he?s ready. ? What we do know is there is great potential there. We also know this is a situation where we need help. We tried to let him work down there without him being the first guy we had to go to, but right now we need somebody to come up.

?Whoever our best guy is needs to be the one.?

Wacha is clearly the ?best guy.? The righty is 4-0 with a 2.05 ERA in nine starts and 52 2/3 innings for the Cardinals? Class AAA Memphis affiliate. His ERA leads the Pacific Coast League and it comes immediately following spring training when he did not allow an earned run during major-league exhibitions nor in minor-league camp.

... Catcher Yadier Molina volunteered after Wacha?s appearance against the Mets in a Grapefruit League game that the prospect?s stuff was already good enough to succeed in the majors.

The Cardinals, however, planned to be protective of their prized prospect.

The Cardinals closely monitored Wacha?s innings last season by using him as a reliever and scheduling his appearances as he climbed to Class AA. General manager John Mozeliak expressed reluctance to promote Wacha less than two weeks ago because this season was the righty?s first exposure to a five-day rotation. Mozeliak said that Wacha had major-league stuff but the team was hesitant to expose him to major-league demands.

Michael Wacha has fewer than 74 innings pitched as a professional and he's averaged just under 6 innings in his 9 starts at Memphis this season. I would much rather they had left him at Memphis until September, but the sore shoulder of fellow rookie John Gast has forced the Cardinals hand.

[Migrant Redbird]

Updating the Cardinals? rookie-pitcher scorecard:

Rookie starters: Shelby Miller, Tyler Lyons and John Gast have combined for a 9-3 record and 2.33 ERA. And next up is Michael Wacha, who makes his major-league debut with a start against visiting Kansas City on Thursday.

Rookie relievers: Trevor Rosenthal, Seth Maness and Carlos Martinez have combined for a 4-1 record, 17 holds, a 2.38 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 45 innings. Martinez is back at Triple A Memphis, being reset as a starter. Another rookie reliever, Michael Blazek, is on the 25-man roster but hasn?t gotten into a game since his promotion Sunday.

Overall, Cardinals rookie pitchers have won 13 games and crafted a 2.35 ERA, with 135 strikeouts and only 35 walks in 134 innings.

Cardinals rookie hurlers won only seven games last season, and four in 2011. The 2013 crop almost certainly will top the 15 wins posted by Jaime Garcia (13 victories) and the 2010 rookie pitchers.

How important are the rookies to the Cardinals? success? The Cardinals have won 19 games in May, and rookies have claimed more than half the victories. Cardinals rookies are 10-2 with a 2.23 ERA in May.

[Moose Milligan]

Wacha was perfect through 5 innings last night.

[PaulFolk]

Wacha was perfect through 5 innings last night.

His name reminds me of Fozzie Bear. Wacha Wacha!

[Migrant Redbird]

The Royals rallied in the top of the 9th, but had to wait through a 4-1/2 hour rain delay to notch the win. Under the current (new) rule, the game is suspended if rained out and has to be resumed at the point of suspension. Since the Royals don't have any more games with the Cards this season, the umpires were determined to finish the game.

Ragged relief, rain and the rulebook lead Cards to late-night loss

Cardinals rookie Michael Wacha?s friends and family had a room reserved at J. Buck?s, a restaurant walking distance from Busch Stadium, so that after his major-league debut they had a place to gather to eat and enjoy.

But there would be no celebration.

The guest of honor didn?t even get to go.

Hours after Wacha retired the first 13 batters he faced in the majors and left with a lead, the Cardinals and Kansas City Royals remained at Busch unable to play because of torrential rain and unable to leave because of the umpires. The Cardinals? bullpen follies that lost the game in the ninth and a new rule that would have given them the win anyway kept the teams playing early into Friday morning. Royals closer Greg Holland cinched a 4-2 win with the final out coming at 3:14 a.m. St. Louis time.

If the game had been suspended and not resumed, the score would have reverted back to the last complete inning, thereby washing out the Royals rally and preserving Wacha's win (essentially the old rule on rain outs).

I agree it's not "fair" to wash out the top of the 9th, but that was the old rule and it applied equally to all. Now it's an umpire judgment call, and last night's umpires took judgment to absurdity with the 4-1/2 hour delay. That's not "fair" either.

Maybe they'll "fix" the rule so that rain delays are limited to a "reasonable" time and then leave the game unfinished if there's no opportunity to complete it later -- assuming it doesn't affect the standings. That way, the game wouldn't be a win for either team.

[OFFNY]

The Royals rallied in the top of the 9th, but had to wait through a 4-1/2 hour rain delay to notch the win. Under the current (new) rule, the game is suspended if rained out and has to be resumed at the point of suspension. Since the Royals don't have any more games with the Cards this season, the umpires were determined to finish the game.

Ragged relief, rain and the rulebook lead Cards to late-night loss

Cardinals rookie Michael Wacha?s friends and family had a room reserved at J. Buck?s, a restaurant walking distance from Busch Stadium, so that after his major-league debut they had a place to gather to eat and enjoy.

But there would be no celebration.

The guest of honor didn?t even get to go.

Hours after Wacha retired the first 13 batters he faced in the majors and left with a lead, the Cardinals and Kansas City Royals remained at Busch unable to play because of torrential rain and unable to leave because of the umpires. The Cardinals? bullpen follies that lost the game in the ninth and a new rule that would have given them the win anyway kept the teams playing early into Friday morning. Royals closer Greg Holland cinched a 4-2 win with the final out coming at 3:14 a.m. St. Louis time.

If the game had been suspended and not resumed, the score would have reverted back to the last complete inning, thereby washing out the Royals rally and preserving Wacha's win (essentially the old rule on rain outs).

I agree it's not "fair" to wash out the top of the 9th, but that was the old rule and it applied equally to all. Now it's an umpire judgment call, and last night's umpires took judgment to absurdity with the 4-1/2 hour delay. That's not "fair" either.

Maybe they'll "fix" the rule so that rain delays are limited to a "reasonable" time and then leave the game unfinished if there's no opportunity to complete it later -- assuming it doesn't affect the standings. That way, the game wouldn't be a win for either team.

That really sucks. That's almost as bad as a team leading by a score of 11-2 after 4 innings of play, and then having it completely wiped out and pretending that none of it ever happened because they didn't play at least 5 innings.

[Tony-OH]

His name reminds me of Fozzie Bear. Wacha Wacha!

Ha, that's the same thing I thought of when I heard his name.

[Migrant Redbird]

Get this! Despite losing 3/5 of his starting rotation and his closer, some fans are so disgusted with Matheny's bullpen management they're calling for his replacement, even with the best record in baseball playing in baseball's strongest division (as of Memorial Day) and having an admittedly difficult road schedule in April.

Mitchell Boggs may, REPEAT MAY, have mental issues which make closing a challenge he's not able to handle. Last season, Boggs led the league in holds and was selected to the US WBC squad. According to Dave Duncan, Boggs has difficulties getting his mechanics squared away each spring and needed the full spring training to get ready. This season, his spring training was interrupted by the WBC and he got back to the team just in time to learn he was the new closer. Boggs did so horribly in that role that he was demoted to AAA to work things out and only brought back up a week or so ago.

Last night, Mujica had closed in the previous 4 games and Rosenthal has settled in very well in the 8th inning setup role, so Matheny decided to use Boggs to protect Wacha's slim 2-1 lead. Matheny's rationale was that his other relievers were rookies and he wasn't comfortable putting them in that spot. Also, I think he probably hopes to rehabilitate Boggs and get thim back to his 2012 form. It didn't work.

Boggs was originally slated to be a starter, but floundered in that role and La Russa put him in the bullpen. I'm afraid now his confidence may be irrevocably damaged. I would be inclined to send him down to Memphis again and not bring him back up until September.

I was one of a "Faction" which advocated La Russa's replacement since about the 2000 time frame. That wasn't based on his in game management decisions -- although I often disagreed with him -- but on La Russa's abysmal "people skills" which caused relationship issues with many of his players. When it comes to "people skills", Matheny is everything that La Russa wasn't. Earlier today, I wrote a rather vehement rebuttal to a call by another Cardinals fan calling for the revival of the "Faction" and replacing La Russa's name with Matheny's.

Oh well, it's been a fun ride so far through the season. Our luck could turn sour at any time.

[Migrant Redbird]

Boggs demoted to Memphis (again); Keith Butler promoted from AA

Boggs (0-3, 11.05 ERA) failed to protect last night?s 2-1 lead over the Royals, giving up a game-tying home run to Jeff Francoeur to spoil Michael Wacha?s opportunity to earn in a win in his highly anticipated debut.

This is not the first time this season that Boggs has been sent down. He was sent to Triple-A Memphis on May 2, but was recalled on May 19 after Jaime Garcia went to the disabled list.

Since then, Boggs has given up a run in three out of his four appearances.

Butler, 24, has only allowed one run over 13.2 innings pitched for Double-A Springfield. He was drafted in 2009 in the 24th round by the Cardinals, and will become the 11th rookie to appear on the Cardinals this season.

Boggs has good stuff, just needs to get his confidence back. This time, I'd give him until September.