Those who follow the St. Louis Cardinals every day will tell you that pitching is, and has been for a while, a problem.
The team currently sits last in the NL Central, and only three teams in the National League have allowed more runs than them.
Jack Flaherty is not as dominant as he used to be, Matthew Liberatore looked like a difference-maker in the minors but has been wildly inconsistent at the MLB level, and Miles Mikolas is more of a back-end starter than a frontline option.
Only Jordan Montgomery and his 3.28 ERA has been able to shine in an otherwise mediocre rotation.
The Cardinals don’t have anybody who can take the ball, dominate an opposing lineup for eight innings, and strike out a dozen hitters.
Codify Baseball posted a list that proves it.
Days since they had a pitcher with 12 Ks:
0 MIN NYM 🔥🔥🔥
1 PHI
3 CIN
3 ARI
6 TOR
10 TB
13 MIA
14 LAA
17 CWS
18 SD
28 TEX
52 PIT
54 ATL
57 HOU
97 SF
277 NYY
287 CLE
347 KC
355 SEA
372 WSH
416 OAK
428 MIL
448 LAD
791 BAL
1,382 CHC
1,390 BOS
1,462 DET
1,770 COL
1,839 STL pic.twitter.com/Poiidky8ij— Codify (@CodifyBaseball) July 6, 2023
It has been 1,839 days since the Cards had a starter punch out 12 hitters in one game.
That’s five years, if you are counting.
Five years!
Montgomery has close to a strikeout per inning, but he is not one to get the ball and fan more than 10 hitters in a given outing.
The Minnesota Twins and the New York Mets have spent 0 days without such a start, as Kodai Senga and Pablo Lopez both did it on Wednesday.
Cardinals fans have been demanding pitching upgrades for years.
They have a capable starter or two on the staff, but no aces.
Montgomery is more of a middle-of-the-rotation star than an ace.
If the Cards want to have a chance at turning around their season, they need to get some pitching ASAP.
NEXT: MLB Insider Reveals A Major Cardinals Trade Rumor
