The 2018 Cardinals may be turning a corner. If you asked the fans 2 months ago who was the biggest part of the Cardinals lineup, the consensus would have probably been Tommy Pham. The starting rotation was one of the bright spots on the team. The team was filled with a lot of bright spots, and a lot of holes. A month ago, the bullpen seemed to be imploding. There seemed to be a lot of small margin losses and the team that was underachieving for the 3rd year in a row.
What has been holding this team back? Fans were left with a lot of questions to be asked. Was the cold weather to blame? Were players looking to do too much, or the injury bug that was slowing the team down? Was it a lack of team cohesion, or maybe a failing manager? While all of these may have been contributing factors, the Birds look to be progressing in the right direction.
Five weeks ago, Matt Carpenter was perhaps the most disliked player in the lineup. Fans seemed to want him gone and felt they had seen enough. With a .140 batting average, an arm that barely looked like he could throw to first from across the diamond, things weren’t looking good. After weeks of hard hit balls into the shift, the player who looked to have lost his touch started to turn around. Now, leading the club with 15 homeruns, slugging percentage, and being a triple away from the cycle, he owns a .259 average. Carpenter is one of the hottest hitters in baseball and fans seem to have changed their tune. Appearing to be back to form with 23 doubles, Carp looks to be making up for the lost time.
Tommy Pham has fallen from his level of stardom that had blessed the team early on in the season. He is now sporting a batting average under .250 and it is continuing to fall. Pham also is making mental errors on defense that are at times hard to watch. Should Pham come back from this slump, it may really help propel us into the second half of the season. It almost feels at this time as if Pham and Carpenter have switched places from where they were several weeks ago.
Greg Holland was perhaps the most disappointing pitcher after the first two months of play. As a pitcher, he was an all-star a year ago and one of MLB’s top closers. Holland appeared to have lost his touch after coming to St Louis. He sported a Slider that didn’t move, and a fastball he couldn’t spot. Holland went onto the DL with an ERA near 10. Outs that seemed impossible and he was visibly upset. Fast forward through an unimpressive stint on the DL and things look different. Holland is moving his ERA back in the right direction and has seemed to have found the breaking ball. His pitching may make a huge difference coming into the second half of the season.
The bullpen has begun to take its shape and roles seem to also be more solidified. The loss of Dominic Leone, Ryan Sheriff, Alex Reyes, and Luke Gregerson has given us more questions than answers. The bullpen has been a mess. When pitchers are healthy they are underperforming. When the bullpen takes the mound, the defense has been awful as well. We can only hope that the bullpen trends in a more positive direction.
As the offense heats up, the bullpen solidifies, and the starters continue to make good starts, we can remain hopeful that the 2018 season will be a success. Overcoming the injuries and the slumps may help the team be explosive and successful after the All-Star Break. Paul Dejong is set to return soon and may be the offensive boost that the team and fans are looking for. It is possible that the team may not have to shop for a trade as Dejongs numbers are comparable to other big names around the league. As a whole players appear to be turning the corner. As long as the team continues to get on the same page, good things will happen.
