Their pitching staff was not their strength. Staff ace Miles Mikolas struggled with his command. So did key relief addition Andrew Miller and young starters Jack Flaherty and Dakota Hudson. Potential star Carlos Martinez remained sidelined by shoulder woes.
Top prospect Alex Reyes suffered a broken left pinkie finger while punching a wall in the minors. Starter Michael Wacha missed one start due to a sore knee and reliever Mike Mayers shut down with a months-long shoulder injury. Whew!
The Cardinals bought their pitchers time by averaging a league-best 5.53 runs per game through Monday’s games. The acquisition of Paul Goldschmidt had the desired impact on the batting order.