The St. Louis Cardinals have endured a difficult start to the 2023 season. St. Louis is five games under .500 as of this story's publication, and they are simply not playing their typical brand of baseball. It is still early in the 2023 campaign, so the Cardinals should be able to turn things around. Fans and analysts are overreacting to certain storylines from the team though.
Today, we are going to analyze three Cardinals' overreactions and determine if they are justified or not.
*Stats via Baseball Reference.
Nolan Gorman is an All-Star
Kicking things off with a positive Cardinals storyline, Nolan Gorman has performed well in 2023. The left-handed hitting versatile infielder/DH is currently slashing .310/.390/.634 with a. 1.024 OPS and six home runs through 21 games. He's been one of the team's best hitters, and that is especially impressive considering the fact that he's in the same lineup as Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado.
Is Gorman an All-Star though?
He was a highly-regarded prospect in the minor leagues. At just 22-years old, the future is unquestionably bright for Gorman. It does appear that we may be witnessing his breakout season.
Some Cardinals fans wondered what the future held for Gorman after hitting just .226 with a .721 OPS in 2022. However, those numbers came over just 89 games in his first season with the Red Birds.
Yes, claiming that Nolan Gorman will be an All-Star through just 21 games in 2023 may be an overreaction, but we will label it as justified.
It's time to give up on Dylan Carlson
On the other hand, Dylan Carlson hasn't lived up to his hype with the Cardinals. Through 327 games at the MLB level, the switch-hitting outfielder is slashing .246/.321/.402 with a .722 OPS. In 2023, he's hitting just .205/.255/.273 with a .528 OPS through 15 games.
Carlson, however, is only 24-years old. There's still enough time for him to find his footing. Yes, the early returns in 2023 don't hint that he's going to emerge as a star anytime soon. He's hitting the ball on the ground far too often, recording a 51.5 percent ground ball rate so far in 2023. He's also striking out at a 23.4 percent clip, much higher than his 19.3 percent strikeout rate in 2022.
It goes without saying, but striking out a lot and hitting the ball on the ground don't make for the best combination. There is legitimate concern here. If Carlson was striking out but still hitting the ball in the air on a consistent basis, that would be a different conversation. He currently owns the lowest flyable rate of his career since 2020 though.
It's still too early in his career to suggest that the Cardinals need to give up on him. But there is legitimate concern about Carlson, and it is justified.
The Cardinals' pitching is bad
The Cardinals aren't pitching well. Does that mean their pitching staff is bad, or is it just a slow start?
St. Louis is 21st in team ERA with a mark of 4.48 in late April. They are also 26th in team WHIP, and 28th in opponents batting average. St. Louis is eighth in strikeouts, but they still are surrendering far too many base runners.
Jack Flaherty and Jordan Montgomery have both performed fairly well in the rotation. The same cannot be said for Steven Matz, Miles Mikolas, Drew VerHagen, and Jake Woodford. Meanwhile, Adam Wainwright is on the injured list.
If the Cardinals want to seriously compete, they need to trade for at least one starting pitcher ahead the deadline in July. Mikolas will likely bounce back from his slow start, but this rotation lacks depth and reliable talent.
The bullpen has had some ups and downs. Jordan Hicks and Andre Pallante have labored. Zack Thompson has been a bright spot, and Giovanny Gallegos has pitched well in limited action.
Calling the Cardinals' pitching staff “bad” would be an overreaction that isn't justified. However, it certainly has been inconsistent.
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