St. Louis Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Pirates: Post Game Analysis
The St. Louis Cardinals bagged their 70th win of the season in a 7-4 battering of the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri and won their third game in the four-game series to win the series 3-1.
The Cardinals were without their batting force Albert Pujols but still managed to dictate terms to a relatively shallow pitching opposition. Jeff Karstens failed to impress in what could have been a key opportunity to shine in front of the management for
an assured spot in the rotation next season. He pitched into the fourth inning but five expensive-runs forced manager Clint Hurdle to relieve him from the duty. The manager opined that Karstens never found his rhythm.
Chris Leroux relieved for 2.1 innings and allowed just one walk in this stretch which, given Karstens’ start, was impressive. Leroux pulled his earned-run average down to .69 and he will now have a major role in the middle innings when the Pirates look to
improve on their performance in the next season.
Joel Hanrahan was yet again impressive for the Pirates with a perfect inning at the death. His ERA stands solid at 1.70 and he is a strong candidate to form the basis of Pittsburgh’s pitching strategy if not lead the staff. His consistency has been his major
armour in a season which has not produced fruitful results for the Pirates.
The Cardinals, on the contrary, found hope for the next season when Kyle Lohse showed form to win his 12th game of the season and take his career-tally to 100. This surely was a day to bask in personal glory for the 32-year-old right-handed starting
pitcher who also completed 1000 career strike-outs earlier in the season.
Lohse is in his 11th year at Major League Baseball and has generally impressed throughout his career. "I've been around for a while and it's nice to get a nice round number like that," Lohse said. The Cardinals might not have a significant chance
to qualify for the playoffs this season but rejuvenation late in the season has given them hope of coming out strong in the next. Lohse has the experience and the ability to be the ace for the Cards in a rotation which does not enjoy depth. He proved this
by scoring a run in the fourth inning which gave Cardinals the crucial lead.
Kyle McClellan proved his mettle yet again from the mound as he pitched 1.1 spotless innings to hold his third game. He can team-up with Jason Motte to form a formidable combination for pitching deep in the game.
Jose Tabata and Alex Presley were impressive on the plate for the Pirates. Presley is now the only batter for the Pirates to have a batting average of more than .300 in the current season. Pirates will want a quick remedy for this grave situation and induction
of young blood at this stage of the season might be one option.
First baseman Lance Berkman combined technique with experience to produce three useful-runs for the Cardinals and see them through in what could have been an intense game. Matt Holliday also impressed with his fielding and batting and the Cardinals now have
several good batting options to build a strong line-up for the next campaign.
This game would be a confidence booster for the Cardinals as they continue to challenge the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central division and manager Tony La Russa rightly agreed.
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and in no way represent Bettor.com's official editorial policy.
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