They’ve broken me, my Cardinals. This team seems so distant, non-understandable, endlessly frustrating and filled with unmet potential. I wrote multiple times about how good this team could be. Multiple former and future All-Stars, former top 5 Cy Young finishers, MVP Candidates…
What did it all amount to? A beige team sweltering in the St. Louis summer.
Where did it all go wrong?
The obvious place to start is with 40-60% of the starting rotation. Wow, like the last couple seasons of Entourage, this got really bad. Let’s start with the 2 largest issues.
- Miles Mikolas: His overall numbers are not that of a big league pitcher, but how those numbers were built is interesting. He has pitched 6 BAD games. But, that means that 14 times he took the bump he was ok, good, or pretty darn great! He’s had 5 starts where he allowed zero earned runs, and another 6 where he allowed two or fewer earned runs. Overall, 14 out of 20 means 70% of the time he gives you a great chance to win. 70% would be good for Shaq from the free-throw line, but for a major league pitcher? Though the team is 10-10 when he starts…
- Erick Fedde: Despite the fact he is now a proud member of the Atlanta Braves, we have to look at his 2025 Card’s numbers. 20 starts, 3-10, 5.22 ERA in 101.2 innings. That ERA is higher than mine was in my last season of slow-pitch for the Icemen. He did have 9 starts where he allowed two earned runs or fewer, including a CG shutout. But, ohhh and this is but is big enough to get Sir Mix-A-Lot out of his seat…he had games where he allowed 6, 7, 7, 7, 3 in 1.1 IP, and 6 earned runs in a start. That all leads to the team being 5-15 when she started. Had the team simply gone 10-10 they would be battling for the 2nd Wild Card.
Next is Andre Pallante. I really wanted him to be great and build on his 2024. But, a 5-7 record and an ERA of 4.91 is not great, heck it’s not even fine. In his last three starts he’s given up 7, 5, and 5 earned runs. That is brutal. Plus, the team is 9-11 when he starts.
Sonny Gray has had 5 bad starts, but otherwise he has been as solid as expected and the team is 16-5 when he starts. Liberatore has had 4 bad starts and the team is 9-10 when he pitches. But, he is the future of this team. As for Michael McGreevy, all the data isn’t in. He’s pitched in 6 games and the team is 4-2. But, he has had a couple of Akili Smith level flops getting lit up like the 4th of July giving up five earned in 4.2 against the Cubs on June 24th and then this past Sunday by allowing 7 earned in 4.2.
Sep 1, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; St. Louis Cardinals seccond baseman Brendan Donovan (33) and left fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) celebrate after defeating the New York Yankees 14-7 at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
The one thing all great teams have in common
Ask any life long success. Ask any great team from history. They will all mention two things, a little luck (always said with a wink and a smile)..and every single one of them will harp on one word; Consistency.
This team is the George Costanza opposite of consistent. They whip your head back and forth like that last part when you’re riding the Ninja at Six Flags. Win a bunch, lose a bunch. Win three of four, lose three of four. That’s why they sit at exactly what they are, just above .500. Just barely above average.
They have talent. Arenado, Gray, Mikolas, Helsley, Contreras, and Donovan have all been deserving All-Stars. Winn, Scott, Walker, and Herrera are all on the rise. But, nobody brings it day in and out offensively. (Defensively they have been great)
This squad in totality, up and down, back and forth. I for one cannot take it anymore. They are only going to disappoint. I want to KNOW what I’m going to get.
Take it down to the studs
Sell what you can sell. Helsley, Matz, Mikolas, Arenado, Contreras…EVERYTHING MUST GO! If they all stay, the team just continues being what it is. A collection of parts heading nowhere without direction or vision. Let the young kids eat and eat until you KNOW what you have. Send them to the at-bat buffet.
Can Walker keep doing what he has since returning from the IL? Can Scott II get to 40-50 steals and win a Gold Glove? Can Winn really put a great couple of months together at the plate and prove he should be mentioned in the same sentence as Bobby Witt Jr.? Can Donovan challenge for a batting title and bring home another Gold Glove?
The team broke me. ME, your personal Scoops Sports Network Redbird cheerleader. I can’t take the whiplash anymore. I’m done.
From here on out this season if you need anything from me, you can find me…
Glued to the TV for all of the rest of the Cardinals games. I can’t stop even when I want to.
-Will Saulsbery
Born and raised in St. Louis, Will Saulsbery is a multitalented writer and musician. A graduate of the University of Missouri, Saulsbery has established himself as a prominent ghostwriter, with his work appearing in top-tier publications like Forbes, Fast Company, Tech Crunch, Entrepreneur, The Observer, and The Hill. His collection of short stories, Death in the Midwest, A Collection Of Nine Stories Of Death In The Midwestern United States... And One In London, is now available for sale and download.
