What’s happened to the National League preseason division favorites?
May 29, 2014; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jon Jay (19) reacts after getting tagged out at second base by San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford (35) during the fourth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
St. Louis Cardinals
We always like to look at pitching. The Cardinals have it even starting the season without closer Jason Motte and starter Jaime Garcia. Both are now back with the team.
One area in which the Cardinals were all world last season was hitting with runners in scoring position (RISP). Last season, St. Louis hit .330 under those game conditions. That led the NL by a whopping 59 points over second place Colorado (.271). This season, the Cards bats haven’t been as “clutch” in this situation, hitting a cool .240 (9th in the NL). That’s 90 points!
Having two outs and runners in scoring position was even more impressive. Try .305, a 58 point separation from second place Los Angeles (.247). As is the case for RISP, the Cards have fallen off to .227 (7th in NL). Between last year and this year, that’s a 78 point drop.
And when you think of these two stats, you have to think Allen Craig. Here’s the numbers:
2013: RISP – .454; RISP w/2 outs – .448
2014: RISP – .283; RISP w/2 outs – .250
Neither of the numbers for this season are particularly bad, but it’s hard not to identify the guy that led the planet last season. He’s still above team average in both. Look at the inspirational leader, Yadier Molina.
2013: RISP – .373; RISP w/2 outs – .309
2014: RSIP – .268; RISP w/2 outs – .154
Scoring runs was the calling card for the Cards last season and it seemed any time they had a runner in scoring position, runs were a plenty. They led the NL last season with 783, averaging 4.83 runs per game. They’ve scored 216 runs this season, or 3.93 per game, 10th in the NL. That’s almost one full run less.
And these: 9-10 in one-run games, 5-8 v LHP, 8-9 v teams over .500, the bullpen has the worst strand rate in the NL (69.2%).
And the start the Milwaukee Brewers had didn’t help matters either.
Heading into today’s game against The Cards were 29-26, but four games behind Milwaukee for the division’s top spot.