ST. LOUIS — Days like Sunday — when the starting lineup was strong, the bats constantly churned and wore down the opponent, and Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Gorman hit long home runs — are the ones that still make the Cardinals believe they pulled off a rousing run in the second half.
But much like the rainy clouds that rolled in late in the day and were the only damper on an 8-4 win over the Nationals, the Cardinals are constantly faced with a sobering reality. Even after Sunday’s stellar performance and win of the series against the newly rising Nats, the Redbirds still sit bottom in the National League Central, 11 1/2 games off first place and considering whether to play MLB at the August 1 buyers or sellers should be trading close.
With Jack Flaherty hitting three bats in six innings, Goldschmidt and Gorman hitting home runs of 443 feet and 423 feet, respectively, and the offense hitting 13, the Cardinals looked more like the team that should rule the NL Central than one game in which he came into the game on a winning tally (in the April 3 game against ATL with a 2-1 record).
The Cardinals are confident this is the start of a second-half upswing that can allow them to defeat the four teams ahead of them in the NL Central.
“We just have to play well every day and get a string of wins,” said Goldschmidt, whose 443-foot shot almost crossed the grassy layline in front of the hitter’s eye at center, giving him the longest home run of 2000 for the season. “If we do that, we have a chance and if we don’t, we don’t have a chance. Lets see what happens.”
Whether the Cardinals can offer any hope by the close could have a direct bearing on Flaherty, a 2014 first-round draft pick by the Cardinals who made his starting lineup in 2017. As Flaherty brought the Nats to three runs from three hits and three limited walks, he picked up a fourth straight win.
Because he could potentially be an attractive player for a team heading into the playoffs and will be a free agent after the season, Flaherty could be dealt out before the deadline if the Cardinals become sellers. Flaherty said his focus Sunday was on continuing the momentum he’s built over the past three weeks, stressing it never occurred to him that it would have been his last start as a Cardinal at Busch Stadium could.
“I mean, maybe a few days in between [starts]said Flaherty when asked if he was considering the possibility of a trade. “My job is to prepare for my next start. I did my job today and I have a lot of work to do before the next one and I know in five days I’ll have the Cubs at Wrigley and that’s always fun.”
An extensive track record in the second half could benefit the Cardinals if they can pull off more games like Saturday’s second (nine runs and best 17 hits of the season) and Sunday’s (eight runs and 13 hits). Since 2000, the Cardinals have had a .580 post-All-Star break win percentage, ranking second in Major League Baseball behind only the Yankees (.589). The Cardinals have a track record of winning in 19 of 22 seasons since 2000 after the All-Star break. In the 2021 season, the Cardinals famously put on a 17-game winning streak that helped them make the playoffs.
Last season, defined by Albert Pujols’ feel-good run of 703 career homers, the Cardinals went 43-25 after the break, catching and passing rival Brewers and overwhelmingly winning the NL Central.
“I don’t know if I have the answer to that [why the Cardinals have been a strong second-half team] Aside from the fact that we don’t change anything from the first half to the second half, neither in approach, nor in intention, nor in our focus or attention to detail,” said manager Oliver Marmol. “We are very proud that we did well and we did it. We will be put to the test this year and look forward to it.”
Marmol, who will play Miles Mikolas against the Marlins on Monday after the right-hander pitched three scoreless innings on Friday before play was suspended due to rain, believes pitching will be key going forward.
“We’re feeling really good with our offense, and if we continue to get good starting pitches, we have a chance,” said Marmol, whose pitchers have posted an MLB 15th-best ERA (4.44) over the past 15 days . “These guys did a much better job and gave us a chance.”