The St. Louis Cardinals may not be in the same tier as the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets, or the Atlanta Braves in the National League, but they are awfully close, especially to the last two.
They are 81-56 and are already 9.5 games ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers: they look destined to win the NL Central title and are peaking at the right time.
St. Louis has won eight of their last ten games and looks like one of the best teams with the postseason less than a month from now.
They are a smart franchise with sound scouting and player development staffs.
Each player on the roster has a role and understands it to perfection, so manager Oliver Marmol deserves a lot of credit.
The Cards Can Score Runs, But Pitching Additions Have Fueled Them Since The Deadline
Two bonafide stars, Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, are extremely productive even after turning 30; and Albert Pujols is a lefty-killer even at 42, just to name a few important contributors on offense.
So what changed for the Cards since the deadline?
Well, they added to their pitching staff: they didn’t bring in any stars, but the players they traded for are performing like stars since arriving in St. Louis.
A key return has served as a boost as well.
The @Cardinals are legitimate World Series contenders. As of Aug. 1, Montgomery, Quintana, and Flaherty were not in the rotation. In 15 combined starts since then, the trio has a 2.18 ERA — and STL is 13-2,” MLB insider Jon Morosi tweeted.
The @Cardinals are legitimate World Series contenders.
As of Aug. 1, Montgomery, Quintana, and Flaherty were not in the rotation.
In 15 combined starts since then, the trio has a 2.18 ERA — and STL is 13-2.@MLB @MLBNetwork @BallySportsMW
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) September 8, 2022
When you add three legitimate starters to a good rotation that already has Adam Wainwright and Miles Mikolas, you are winning half the battle already.
St. Louis will be a tough out in the postseason, and if the Mets and Braves aren’t careful, they may see the Cards taking the first-round bye away from them.
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