St. Louis Cardinals hope rotation clicks in remaining NLCS games – NLCS Update
As the competition in National League Championship Series stiffens, the St. Louis Cardinals reliance on the bullpen has become ever more obvious. In the post-season alone, relievers have pitched 34 innings whereas the starters have tossed 36.
In Game 2 alone, for example, Chris Carpenter was replaced after four innings as he surrendered five runs. With relievers taking charge, they allowed two runs in the remaining five innings.
However, the post-season challenge as far as pitching is concerned, is to be shared equally by both the rotation and the bullpen, as the Cardinals see it. Manager Mike Matheny shed some light on it on Tuesday, October 16.
"The days off that you have in the postseason, like today, you do get an opportunity for your bullpen to get rest," Matheny said Tuesday. "So we're not as concerned about that as much as we know that if our starters aren't going deep, then we're giving up runs. ... Your foundation is your starting pitching. And you have strong starting pitching, you have an opportunity to be successful."
It is Kyle Lohse who is to start in Game 3. It is only him who has so far pitched six innings in any post-season game. Lohse appears prepared for the challenge. Be that as it may, the best-of-seven games indeed need a supposedly invulnerable rotation for the World Series Champion Cardinals.
What may be reassuring for the Cardinals is the fact that the bullpen has held 2.12 ERA in the post-season. So in case the rotation does not perform the way it has to, the Cardinals will have to look to Joe Kelly and Edward Mujica to do the needed.
It goes without saying that the Cardinals comeback in the regular season, especially in the second half, would not be possible without an incredibly solid team combination.
That is what the Cardinals will like to see in the remainder of the NLCS as well so as to make it to the World Series, a title they had proudly clinched the last year after beating the Texas Rangers.
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