Playoff Watch: Michael Wacha and the St. Louis Cardinals

An update on yesterday’s blog: Joe Mauer is now out for the season with concussion  systems, but that isn’t something to be worried about too much. The Twins are out of playoff contention, and it sounds like it won’t hold out Mauer for the 2014. It’s more of a safe-than-sorry measure, but I thought I had to mention it anyways. 

Coming up before the playoffs, I thought I might as well take a deeper look at each of the playoff contending teams. Remember last year, where there were seven no hitters and perfect games? This year, there have been three pitchers that have lost a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth. One was Yu Darvish earlier in the season, one was Yusiermo Petit not too long ago, and, just yesterday, was Michael Wacha for the St. Louis Cardinals.

What a perfect time to talk about St. Louis (and I’ll get to Wacha in a sec). The Cardinals have clinched a playoff spot, and have looked so good lately that they will probably win the division too. Currently, they are two games ahead of the Pirates, and three ahead from Cincinnati. Lucky for the Cardinals, they are done facing both teams; in fact, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati have to square off in their last series of the year.
The Cardinals, on the other hand, have to play the Cubs.

 

They might just have the best overall team in the National League. They have an offense that has mostly been overshadowed by the Dodgers and the Braves, but they have some guys that are not only top players at their positions, but are potential MVP candidates. I look at their starting roster and it’s sometimes scary to see. 

There are guys that you will know easily from the media, like Yadier Molina (potential MVP candidate), Matt Holliday, and Carlos Beltran. Molina, Holliday, and Beltran are all doing quite well, batting .315/.355/.472, .298/.382/.479, and .299/.341/.496, respectively.

But there’s also Matt Carpenter, who actually leads the team in batting average (.324), OBP (.396), Doubles (55), Triples (7), hits (198), and offensive WAR (6.9). Or Allen Craig who, though on the DL right now, bats .315/.373/.457 in 134 games. Jon Jay and David Freese have put up good numbers, but they’ve seen better days (especially Freese, but you know what he’s capable of doing in the playoffs).

This offense is young and very talented. They are 3^rd in the MLB in runs scored (762), 4^th in batting average (.269), 3^rd in OBP (.331), and 12^th in slugging (.400). They also have a batting average above .300 with runners-in-scoring-position, which is absolutely insane, and the best in the MLB by a long shot.

 

There’s not much difference with pitching. It’s good to see Adam Wainwright back in gear, after he had Tommy John surgery in 2011 and did not pitch the entire season (yet the STILL won the World Series). He has been the ace and the best pitcher, having an 18-9 record with a 3.01 ERA and an amazing 214/34 K/BB ratio (6.294, best in MLB). 

Right behind him in ERA among qualified starters is rookie Shelby Miller, who is 14-9 with a 3.12 ERA. For a rookie season, he has been great, but nothing sensational like Jose Fernandez and Yasiel Puig.

Other starters include Lance Lynn, Joe Kelly, and Jake Westbrook, who have all had their ups and downs on the season. Especially Lance Lynn, who was great in the first half, but has gotten rocked in the second. Since moving to the rotation in July, Joe Kelly has put up a 2.32 ERA.

Now brings me to Michael Wacha. First off, who is he, and how did the Cardinals get him? Wacha is 6’6”, 210 pounds, and 22 years old. The Cardinals got him in 2012 with the 19^th pick in the 2012 draft. How did they get that draft pick? When they lost Albert Pujols in free agency. So not only did they save about $240 million, but they also picked up a potential star. 

 

In his first year with the Cardinals, Wacha is 4-1 with a 2.78 ERA in nine starts and 64.2 innings. He’s also come in to relief six times, has done pretty well then. In his no-hit bid last night, Ryan Zimmerman barely beats out an infield hit to break it up, and the Nationals just barely survive, just a day after being eliminated from the playoffs. It was so close!

Does he belong in the starting rotation for the Cardinals in the playoffs? I would say yes, particularly because Jake Westbrook hasn’t been doing too well. Manager Mike Matheny has plenty of options here, so don’t be surprised if he starts one game, then reliefs the next, especially if they go into extra innings.

I’ll briefly mention their bullpen. Edward Mujica, in his first year with the team, has been outstanding, having 37 saves with a 2.53 ERA, and a 46/5 K/BB ratio. Kevin Siegrist and Trevor Rosenthal have been great in the pen too. Siegrist has 10 holds and a 0.48 ERA, while Rosenthal has 29 holds and a 2.70 ERA in 72 games. They also just acquired John Axford from the Brewers, who, though he didn’t have great numbers with the crew this season, has shown dominance before. In 12 games with the Brewers, he has a 1.93 ERA. The Cardinals have made some great moves in 2013 in realigning their bullpen.

I really like this team’s chances in the playoffs. I probably will have them in the World Series. They are dynamic, and have historically been great in the playoffs. While the Dodgers and the Braves are really tough to get past, the Cardinals have been consistently well this season, both at home and on the road. That’s something that the Dodgers and the Braves can’t say.

That’s my first look into the playoffs with the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Email me at statsbuddy42@gmail.com for any questions/comments/concerns.

-Evan Boyd