Photography by pdsphil, courtesy Wikimedia Commons
What a difference two days can make.
Losses on Saturday (blown save) and Sunday (blowout) to the Marlins dropped the Cardinals into third place, behind the Brewers and Pirates.
The defending National League champions have been mostly ordinary in 2014, hovering near the .500 mark, their solid pitching undermined by dreadful offense. Among the 30 MLB teams, the Redbirds rank 28th in runs scored and 29th in home runs. And a recent string of injuries has raised concerns about the pitching, too, with Michael Wacha, Jaime Garcia, and Joe Kelly all on the shelf.
Then, on Monday night, with the Pirates visiting St. Louis for a four-game set, Adam Wainwright and Pittsburgh hurler Charlie Morton locked up in a duel, matching zeroes on the scoreboard as lightning flashed across the sky. In the bottom of the ninth, the game remained scoreless. Matt Adams, who grew up in Western Pennsylvania cheering for the Pirates, came to the plate with one on and one out. He launched a walk-off home run to right field, the Cardinals’ first game-ending homer since 2011.
They would only need to wait a day for their second. On Tuesday, with the score tied at 4 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, rookie Kolten Wong launched another walk-off blast to just about the same spot in the right-field seats.
What a difference two days can make.
So let’s get to the question in the headline: Could these dramatic wins send the Cardinals on a surge? It certainly wouldn’t be unprecedented. Last year, on June 21, the Dodgers were 30–42, in last place, 9.5 games behind the Diamondbacks in the NL West. They won 10 of their next 11 games, several wins coming courtesy of dramatic late-inning rallies. The Dodgers rode that wave for the rest of the season, winning their division by 11 games and advancing to the NLCS, where they fell to the Cardinals.
Honestly, it’s a bit surprising just how angst-ridden Cardinals fans have been about the team’s slow start in 2014. If recent history is any indication, you might call muddling through the regular season, sneaking into the playoffs, and taking off in October the “Cardinal Way.”
In 2006, St. Louis battled injuries and inconsistencies all year, finishing a mediocre 83–78. Twelve teams won more games. But thanks to competing in a weak division, the Cardinals sneaked into the postseason.
We all know what happened next.
In 2011, the Brewers ran away with the Central. That left St. Louis to contend for the Wild Card (back then, there was only one). On August 25, the Cardinals trailed the Braves by 10.5 games in that race. Then the Redbirds won 23 of their final 31 games, while the Braves imploded. When Atlanta lost a 13-inning thriller on the final day of the season, the Cardinals clinched their playoff berth by a single game. It was one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history.
We all know what happened next.
It’s possible. Kelly is about to return from the disabled list, which should boost the rotation. The ridiculously hyped prospect Oscar Taveras is back in the big leagues and showing subtle signs of coming to life. Wong has returned from an injury and seems poised to break out. Matt Holliday has looked old and sluggish at the plate, but a hot month or two isn’t out of the question. Sooner or later, you’d think Allen Craig will come alive. Maybe John Mozeliak will land a big fish at the trade deadline, giving the lineup more firepower. Any team that pitches as well as the Cardinals has a chance.
It’s a long season, and plenty can change between now and October.
Two days can make all the difference.
