With the start of the 2019 season rapidly approaching, I believe it’s time that we give you the ultimate breakdown of each division and predict their position in the standings come season’s end. It’s hard to predict record, so we’ll just give you their placement in the standings. Of course, this is coming from a fan’s perspective and what we think it could look like, not what it will. Today, we focus on the National League Central and the St. Louis Cardinals:
St. Louis Cardinals
2018 record: 88-74, 3rd in NL Central
Projected Lineup:
3B Matt Carpenter
SS Paul DeJong
1B Paul Goldschmidt
LF Marcell Ozuna
C Yadier Molina
CF Harrison Bader
RF Dexter Fowler
2B Kolten Wong
Pitcher
Starting Rotation:
RH Miles Mikolas
RH Michael Wacha
RH Jack Flaherty
RH John Gant
RH Adam Wainwright
Key Bullpen Pieces:
RH Jordan Hicks
LH Andrew Miller
RH Dan Ponce de Leon
LH Brett Cecil
Key Bench Pieces:
1B/OF Jose Martinez
OF Tyler O’Neill
INF Jedd Gyorko
As surprising as it may sounds, the Cardinals have not appeared in the postseason since 2015. It wasn’t long ago where the Redbirds were the perennial favorites to win the NL Central each year. They hope that 2019 is the year they make it back to October baseball and they sure did add a few pieces to help. Paul Goldschmidt is an MVP candidate almost every year and I’m still baffled that he’s yet to win one. You can’t ask for better, more consistent production from Goldy, who routinely hits close to .300 with 30 home runs and an OBP of close to .400. He’s going to be a huge factor in the Cardinals’ offense. Not to mention you’re pairing him with the likes of Carpenter, Ozuna and the up and coming Bader.
The Cards’ rotation is led by Mikolas, who came out of nowhere in 2018 after spending the previous three seasons in Japan. For his first season back in the big leagues since 2014 with the Rangers, Mikolas pitched to a 2.83 ERA with 146 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.071, giving him his first All Star selection and a 6th place finish in the NL Cy Young vote. His ace status seems to have gotten just a bit bigger with the possibility of Carlos Martinez missing the first few months of the season with a shoulder injury. Behind Mikolas, you got Wacha, who made just 15 starts in 2018, and Flaherty, who punched out 182 last year with a 3.34 ERA in 28 starts. I expect him to be the X factor of the Cards’ rotation.
The bullpen received quite an upgrade with the signing of Andrew Miller. Say what you want about Miller’s down 2018, but I fully expect him to bounce back in 2019. We all know he’s better than that 4.24 ERA he put up last year. The Cardinals have him from the left side and the flamethrower Jordan Hicks from the right, who hit 105 on the gun several times last year. Hicks did have some trouble with command walking 45 batters in 77.2 innings, but there’s no doubt he’s a guy to look after for years to come.
As far as where the Cardinals will be in the standings come the end of September, I see a rise in win total from 2018 but still in a familiar spot. They’ll battle with the Brewers for a second place finish behind the Cubs.
2019 prediction: 2nd in NL Central
