Another rookie, another stellar start....the Cardinals rookies are making it look too easy.
Tonight was the much anticipated debut of Michael Wacha and he didn't disappoint.
Pitching on 8 days rest, Wacha dominated the fading Kansas City Royals, holding them to just two hits and one run in 7 innings, while striking out 6.
But wait, it gets even better.
Wacha actually set down the first 13 batters he faced before Lorenzo Cain doubled in the 5th. Cain scored one out later when Elliot Johnson singled. However, Wacha settled back down after that, retiring the next 6 hitters he faced before being removed from the game.
Relying mostly on his fastball, which ranged from 92-97 mph, and his change, Wacha kept the Royals guessing all night, inducing 9 groundouts and only 4 flyouts. He only threw 2 curveballs out of his 93 pitches.
It would have been nice to see him get the win, however, Mike Matheny decided to bring in Mitchell Boggs to close out the game, as Edward Mujica was unavailable, as he promptly gave up a homer to Jeff Francoeur to tie the game (was Trevor Rosenthal unavailable too?) and a walk. Matheny then brought in Victor Marte to add more fuel to the fire and well let's just say I'm not too happy with Matheny's decisions (and neither is Wacha).
In any case, just a couple days after telling everyone to temper their expectations on Wacha, I am now jumping on the Wacha bandwagon full bore. Yes, its just one start, however, it only took only one Shelby Miller start last season to get everyone excited about him.
I've got a feeling that Wacha is going to be just as special.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Michael Wacha gets the call for the Cardinals
After seemingly endless speculation over the last month, the Cardinals have finally decided to call up Michael Wacha to join their injury depleted starting rotation. The Cardinals announced the move today. Wacha will make his much anticipated debut on Thursday night in St. Louis against Jeremy Guthrie and the Kansas City Royals.
Wacha has received a lot of hype this year, ever since his dominance during Spring Training, in which he allowed only one unearned run in 11.2 innings. His stats so far at AAA Memphis have not been as spectacular, but a 4-0 record and 2.05 ERA is nothing to sniff at either.
However, before Cardinals fans (and fantasy players) everywhere rush to jump on the Wacha hype bandwagon, here are a few things to consider.
First, Wacha will have had 8 days off since his last start. Thus, he will be a bit out of his routine and may also be a bit pumped up for his start. Don't be surprised if he starts the game a little wild and gets knocked around a bit. Even so, he will still get every opportunity to strut his stuff at the major league level (at least until Jake Westbook is healthy).
Second, despite his nice ERA at Memphis, Wacha has not been as dominant as he was last year or even during the spring, striking out only 34 hitters in 52.2 innings. Perhaps he has been working on his breaking stuff while at Memphis, instead of relying on his bread-and-butter pitch, his changeup, to get hitters out. But the low strikeout rate is still a cause for concern.
Finally, there have been many talented pitchers, including certain Hall of Famer Greg Maddux, who struggled in their first season in the majors. Its rare for pitchers to come up and dominate from the get go. Sometimes they get off to a hot start, but the league soon catches up to them and they either adjust or get sent back down for more seasoning.
So, while it is certainly exciting for all to see Wacha get the nod for Thursday, we should temper our expectations some and just enjoy the ride.
Wacha has received a lot of hype this year, ever since his dominance during Spring Training, in which he allowed only one unearned run in 11.2 innings. His stats so far at AAA Memphis have not been as spectacular, but a 4-0 record and 2.05 ERA is nothing to sniff at either.
However, before Cardinals fans (and fantasy players) everywhere rush to jump on the Wacha hype bandwagon, here are a few things to consider.
First, Wacha will have had 8 days off since his last start. Thus, he will be a bit out of his routine and may also be a bit pumped up for his start. Don't be surprised if he starts the game a little wild and gets knocked around a bit. Even so, he will still get every opportunity to strut his stuff at the major league level (at least until Jake Westbook is healthy).
Second, despite his nice ERA at Memphis, Wacha has not been as dominant as he was last year or even during the spring, striking out only 34 hitters in 52.2 innings. Perhaps he has been working on his breaking stuff while at Memphis, instead of relying on his bread-and-butter pitch, his changeup, to get hitters out. But the low strikeout rate is still a cause for concern.
Finally, there have been many talented pitchers, including certain Hall of Famer Greg Maddux, who struggled in their first season in the majors. Its rare for pitchers to come up and dominate from the get go. Sometimes they get off to a hot start, but the league soon catches up to them and they either adjust or get sent back down for more seasoning.
So, while it is certainly exciting for all to see Wacha get the nod for Thursday, we should temper our expectations some and just enjoy the ride.
Monday, May 27, 2013
Injuries have Cardinals shifting focus from bullpen to rotation
After spending over a month trying to sort out their bullpen, the Cardinals now face new problems with a starting rotation that has been beset by injuries.
The bullpen issues stemmed from an season-ending injury to closer Jason Motte, which caused bullpen roles to shift--a shift that some, like Mitchell Boggs, were not ready for. The Cardinals solved their problems by shifting Edward Mujica to closer and calling up Carlos Martinez and Seth Maness to shore up the back end of the pen.
Now, a rash of injuries to the Cardinals rotation has the Cardinals scrambling again.
First, Jake Westbrook went on the DL with an elbow injury. Then Jaime Garcia was lost for the season with a shoulder injury. As if that wasn't enough, Westbrook's replacement, John Gast, was removed from his last start with shoulder tightness.
Thus, the Cardinals are making changes on the fly again.
First, Michael Wacha, the Cardinals best pitching prospect still in the minors, was pulled from his start Monday and is probably option #1 to replace Gast in the rotation. Nothing has been announced yet and, as Bernie Miklasz points out, there are still reasons why the Cardinals wouldn't call on Wacha, but it appears that he is likely replacement for Gast.
In addition, the Cardinals have sent Carlos Martinez down to AAA to stretch him out as a starter again. With all the injuries to starting pitching, the Cardinals now need Martinez as a starter more than they do as a (little used) reliever. While it probably won't take him long to ramp up, Martinez still has work to do on his secondary pitches before he can be considered for a starting role.
Finally, Victor Marte was recalled to fill Martinez' role in the pen. Marte had a 4.91 ERA in 40.1 IP last year for the Cardinals, but considering that Martinez only pitched 9.1 innings in the 21 days he was up with the club, its unlikely that Marte will be used in high leverage situations.
So the Cards are shuffling the deck again and the fans are hoping that the magic continues.
The bullpen issues stemmed from an season-ending injury to closer Jason Motte, which caused bullpen roles to shift--a shift that some, like Mitchell Boggs, were not ready for. The Cardinals solved their problems by shifting Edward Mujica to closer and calling up Carlos Martinez and Seth Maness to shore up the back end of the pen.
Now, a rash of injuries to the Cardinals rotation has the Cardinals scrambling again.
First, Jake Westbrook went on the DL with an elbow injury. Then Jaime Garcia was lost for the season with a shoulder injury. As if that wasn't enough, Westbrook's replacement, John Gast, was removed from his last start with shoulder tightness.
Thus, the Cardinals are making changes on the fly again.
First, Michael Wacha, the Cardinals best pitching prospect still in the minors, was pulled from his start Monday and is probably option #1 to replace Gast in the rotation. Nothing has been announced yet and, as Bernie Miklasz points out, there are still reasons why the Cardinals wouldn't call on Wacha, but it appears that he is likely replacement for Gast.
In addition, the Cardinals have sent Carlos Martinez down to AAA to stretch him out as a starter again. With all the injuries to starting pitching, the Cardinals now need Martinez as a starter more than they do as a (little used) reliever. While it probably won't take him long to ramp up, Martinez still has work to do on his secondary pitches before he can be considered for a starting role.
Finally, Victor Marte was recalled to fill Martinez' role in the pen. Marte had a 4.91 ERA in 40.1 IP last year for the Cardinals, but considering that Martinez only pitched 9.1 innings in the 21 days he was up with the club, its unlikely that Marte will be used in high leverage situations.
So the Cards are shuffling the deck again and the fans are hoping that the magic continues.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
John Gast pulled after facing 6 hitters with shoulder injury (and other bad news). Is it Michael Wacha time now?
When it rains, it pours.
According to Jennifer Langosch, the Cardinals pitching staff took another hit tonight when John Gast had to leave the game, after facing just 6 hitters, due to shoulder tightness.
As if that wasn't enough, Jennifer Langosch also reported that Jake Westbrook will likely get a second opinion on his ailing shoulder next week, most likely with Dr. James Andrews. That's never a good sign.
Finally, to top it off, Jennifer reported that the Cardinals are "backing off" Chris Carpenter's throwing program as he didn't feel as good after his last bullpen session.
With Gast likely heading to the DL, Westbrook likely needing longer to rehab his elbow and Carpenter likely needing more time for his comeback, it appears that the Cardinals may have no other choice than to turn to Michael Wacha.
If Gast's injury is short term in nature, the Cards may be able to make due with someone like Joe Kelly or Seth Maness filling in for a start or two. But, if he is going to be out for an extended period of time, the Cardinals with need a more long-term solution and Wacha would be the logical choice.
The service time clock is obviously still a factor, but its not the only factor in these decisions. When you're a team contending for a division title, you've got to put the players on the field that give you the best chance to win.
For now, all we can do is wait for a prognosis on Gast and see what happens next.
According to Jennifer Langosch, the Cardinals pitching staff took another hit tonight when John Gast had to leave the game, after facing just 6 hitters, due to shoulder tightness.
As if that wasn't enough, Jennifer Langosch also reported that Jake Westbrook will likely get a second opinion on his ailing shoulder next week, most likely with Dr. James Andrews. That's never a good sign.
Finally, to top it off, Jennifer reported that the Cardinals are "backing off" Chris Carpenter's throwing program as he didn't feel as good after his last bullpen session.
With Gast likely heading to the DL, Westbrook likely needing longer to rehab his elbow and Carpenter likely needing more time for his comeback, it appears that the Cardinals may have no other choice than to turn to Michael Wacha.
If Gast's injury is short term in nature, the Cards may be able to make due with someone like Joe Kelly or Seth Maness filling in for a start or two. But, if he is going to be out for an extended period of time, the Cardinals with need a more long-term solution and Wacha would be the logical choice.
The service time clock is obviously still a factor, but its not the only factor in these decisions. When you're a team contending for a division title, you've got to put the players on the field that give you the best chance to win.
For now, all we can do is wait for a prognosis on Gast and see what happens next.
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Where would Cardinals be without their rookie pitchers?
Beset by injuries, the Cardinals have had to turn to the farm system early and often this year.
Normally, when you're dealing with young and unproven players, the results are at best mixed. However, so far the Cardinals rookies have come through. The latest example being Tyler Lyons, who started for the Cardinals last night and hurled 7 innings while allowing only 1 run.
Although Matt Adams and Pete Kozma have helped the Cardinals offense, the biggest impact that the rookies have had is on the pitching staff. So far this season, the Cardinals have utilized 6 rookie pitchers, including 3 starters and 3 relievers.
The rookie starters, led by Shelby Miller and recently joined by John Gast and Tyler Lyons, have gone 8-3 with a 2.16 ERA and 74 K's across 75 innings.
The relievers, led by Trevor Rosenthal along with Carlos Martinez and Seth Maness, have posted a 2.83 ERA with 45 K's in 38 innings.
This gives the rookie pitchers an overall record of 11-3 and a 2.38 ERA in 113 innings.
Not too shabby.
Better still, the Cardinals have yet to utilize their top pitching prospect, Michael Wacha, thereby keeping his service clock from ticking.
Its nice to be able to tap into your farm system and get quality results and it is a big part of the reason the Cardinals are in first place in the NL Central with a 30-16 record.
The Cards rookies may still take some lumps this year, as teams get a book on them, and when that happens, we'll see who can adjust and who cannot. But, so far, I like what I have seen.
Normally, when you're dealing with young and unproven players, the results are at best mixed. However, so far the Cardinals rookies have come through. The latest example being Tyler Lyons, who started for the Cardinals last night and hurled 7 innings while allowing only 1 run.
Although Matt Adams and Pete Kozma have helped the Cardinals offense, the biggest impact that the rookies have had is on the pitching staff. So far this season, the Cardinals have utilized 6 rookie pitchers, including 3 starters and 3 relievers.
The rookie starters, led by Shelby Miller and recently joined by John Gast and Tyler Lyons, have gone 8-3 with a 2.16 ERA and 74 K's across 75 innings.
The relievers, led by Trevor Rosenthal along with Carlos Martinez and Seth Maness, have posted a 2.83 ERA with 45 K's in 38 innings.
This gives the rookie pitchers an overall record of 11-3 and a 2.38 ERA in 113 innings.
Not too shabby.
Better still, the Cardinals have yet to utilize their top pitching prospect, Michael Wacha, thereby keeping his service clock from ticking.
Its nice to be able to tap into your farm system and get quality results and it is a big part of the reason the Cardinals are in first place in the NL Central with a 30-16 record.
The Cards rookies may still take some lumps this year, as teams get a book on them, and when that happens, we'll see who can adjust and who cannot. But, so far, I like what I have seen.
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