The Cardinals have been perpetually confident and perennially proud, from the ownership to the front office to the coaching staff to the players. And during the past eight years, when these confident folks’ hope was extinguished in late September, or early in the playoffs, they still pointed to a whole bunch of regular-season success (and minor-league development) as fuel for the next year’s confidence.
They believed — and believe — the way they’re doing things is the right way, and that surely, someday, the odds and the baseball gods would put them in their first World Series since 2013.
But now, in 2023, it’s not even about proving it in the postseason. It’s about proving it in the regular season. Immediately. Yesterday.
Because the Cardinals stink.
They’re 10-19, they are 10 games out of first place and their longest winning streak is two games.
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Admittedly, it’s only the first week of May. In baseball seasons, we’ve sometimes seen good teams overcome brutally bad starts. And the 2023 Cardinals have the third-best exit velocity average and hard-hit percentage in Major League Baseball (meaning they’ve been unlucky with some barreled outs). This could be a newspaper column that, come June, the Cardinals laugh at and call “premature.†But right now, all we have to go on is the 10-19 start. And that’s Rockies-esque.
In the offseason, the Cardinals lost a former All-Star catcher and replaced him with a younger former All-Star catcher. That was a fine move. But other than that, the Cardinals chose not to splurge or gamble on any big-name pitchers or hitters. They were confident in their own guys. Some were trending up, and certainly, those who had down 2022s would bounce back.
Well, the Cardinals’ confidence has backfired.
Tyler O’Neill, Dylan Carlson, Brendan Donovan, Alec Burleson, Steven Matz, Jake Woodford, Andre Pallante, Ryan Helsley — all of them have been rough out there in 2023.
Now, a number of people (some of us writers included) can get so caught up in the young prospects and the overall optimism of spring, it seems as if every player is primed for a big year. And as 2023 began, there was this mindset that the Cardinals are loaded, that they have an abundance of talent. But — you know who else is loaded with an abundance of talent? Like, so many teams. The Cardinals looked good on paper, but so did other clubs, most of which now have better records than the Cardinals.
And, sure, some talented, big-spending teams are struggling (such as the Phillies, Padres and Yankees), but “struggling†means they’re hanging around .500. The Cardinals need a nine-game winning streak just to get to .500.
With the Cardinals, the most frustrating thing is everything. Every facet has been a bad asset in at least one or some of the games. One night, it’s the starting pitching, the next night, it’s the relief pitching. One night, it’s the hitting, the next night it’s the fielding. How do I lose thee? Let me count the ways. The Cardinals are interesting only because it’s a mystery each game — just which aspect of the team will blow it tonight?
The weirdest Cardinals storyline is that of their statistically worst offensive player — Nolan Arenado. It’s like it’s not him out there. Remember the movie “Dave†starring ºüÀêÊÓƵ native Kevin Kline, in which the presidential doppelganger Dave took over for the comatose commander-in-chief? Surely that is Nolan’s Dave out there with the .239 average and the .600 OPS.
He will, inevitably, start hitting at least a bit better. But, conversely, will namesake Nolan Gorman keep hitting as if he’s 2022 Arenado? I still think Gorman will have a strong 2023, but I don’t see him flirting with a .900 OPS.
The Cardinals need to — and inevitably will — make some changes Tuesday, because something has got to change. Call up Matthew Liberatore and give him a couple of starts in Matz’s spot. Utilize the Taylor Motter spot with someone who they can trust with a pinch hit. And, of course, we’ll all anxiously await Adam Wainwright’s return to the rotation (inevitably in Woodford’s spot).
Wainwright is a gamer. Wainwright is coming off a good year. Wainwright will be pitching on the adrenaline that comes from his final season.
Wainwright also struggled with velocity and some location in his rehab starts. Wainwright is a year older, now 41. Wainwright isn’t a guarantee.
But we’ve learned our lesson by betting against this guy.
So here’s some optimism that he will make some nice starts in May.
Though, with this team, that guarantees little. The Cardinals, after all, average 4.24 runs per game — only four National League teams average fewer.
The Cardinals are in a funk, and thus so is ºüÀêÊÓƵ.
Our town is down — there is no joy in stuck-in-the-mud “ville.â€