ST. LOUIS -- When Michael Wacha gave up one run in six innings Tuesday night, he did more than pitch the Cardinals to victory over the Mets. His outing pushed the Cardinals past the Oakland A's into the major-league lead for rotation ERA.
The Cardinals enter their four-game series against the Phillies on Thursday night with a 3.00 ERA, with the A's at 3.07. St. Louis starters also rank first in opponents' batting average, at .226, and third in innings pitched.
An imposing showing of arms, any way you look at it.
But as impressive as has been their work, it has not been surprising. Not one bit. The Cardinals were supposed to have one of the majors' best rotations and, unlike another part of the team, starters have lived up to the billing.
They have made it look like no big deal, too. That is, no one in the rotation is having a breakout year or pitching wildly better than you thought they would. And as manager Mike Matheny pointed out Wednesday, "All of them have had kind of a rough one somewhere." Actually, that's been more like two or three for most. But bottom line, they're simply pitching to their capability.
Start with the ace, Adam Wainwright. He's been as good as any starter in the game with a 9-3 record and 2.15 ERA after 14 starts. But after the same number of starts last year, he was 10-3 with a 2.18 ERA. Call that business as usual. As long as the tendinitis in his right elbow has vanished as he claimed Wednesday morning, you can expect more of the same.
Michael Wacha is only 22 and in his first full season so, yes, a 2.79 ERA is a notable number. But after last October, would you expect anything less? Wacha's numbers are in line with what he put up in his rookie regular season -- 2.78 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP (to 1.12 this year â even though he has yet to enjoy the kind of run he had in his breakout postseason). The way he is bringing along his curve as a third quality pitch after his fastball/changeup, he is likely to at some point in the season.
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For most of May, Shelby Miller seemed to have taken a step back in his second season. His mechanics were out of whack and his strikeouts were down and his walks were up. Miller has righted his ways this month but he's still not pitching as well as he did in the first half of his rookie season, when he went 9-6 with a 2.92 ERA. So far this half: 7-5 with a 3.42 ERA.
Lance Lynn has been, well, Lance Lynn without as much run support (4.4 compared with 5.7 last year). He pitched the best game of his career against the Yankees, but he's also had his share of blowup innings. His ERA is down to 3.15 (compared with 4.00 before the break last year), but given the quality of his power stuff and the maturity he's gained on the mound, this year's ERA is more in line with what he can do. If he were getting the same run support he had last year, his record would be closer to the 11-4 he turned in before last year's break than the 7-4 he fell to after Wednesday's 3-2 loss to the Mets.
Jaime Garcia's return from last year's season-ending shoulder surgery has gone better than probably even Garcia expected, though he isn't likely to admit as much. He hasn't been saying much of anything, in fact, besides "that was unacceptable" or "I did a good job of keeping my team in the game."
But look past the injuries and his occasional odd comment. When Garcia is right, not many left-handers are more effective. He went 4-1 with a 2.25 ERA in nine starts before his left shoulder gave out in 2013, so you'd figure his 3.72 ERA after six starts this year is more likely to drop than rise as he gets further out from last year's surgery.
Among the spot starters, neither Tyler Lyons nor Carlos Martinez overwhelmed with their performances. Martinez, in fact, has at least one more level to climb as he gains experience. Joe Kelly made just three starts -- all of them excellent -- before tearing his hamstring, but you can't say he was pitching any better than when he carried the rotation during the second half of last year.
Because the rotation is so young -- Wainwright, at 32, is the senior member by five years -- the Cardinals will have to watch the innings closely as the season wears on. But Miller, Wacha and Lynn are all big and strong and have stayed healthy. There should be no more concern their performance will decline in the second half than for any other starter.
The depth of the rotation remains the team's No. 1 strength, too. At some point, maybe even before the break, Kelly will return, but probably without a spot in the rotation. Lyons is nearing the end of his stint on the disabled list (shoulder) and likely will be sent to Memphis to stay ready in case he's needed in St. Louis. When Kevin Siegrist (forearm) comes back, the bullpen will be so stocked that the Cardinals will have an opportunity to stretch out Martinez in the minors, perhaps to prepare for a stretch run of starts like Wacha in 2013.
With eight legitimate starters, it's a tough rotation to crack. As the numbers show, it's a tough rotation, period.
"If we continue to have these kinds of starts, which is a lot to ask, it's going to be a lot of fun," Matheny said.
It already has been, just as was expected.
You can follow Stan McNeal on Twitter at @StanMcNeal or email him at stanmcneal@gmail.com.
