There have been a lot of disappointing teams this MLB season, but perhaps none more so than the St. Louis Cardinals. They have limped to the third-worst record in baseball after winning the division last year and earning a trip to the playoffs.
Not a whole lot has changed for the Cardinals save for the departure of franchise icon Yadier Molina. Now, they can’t pitch very well and most of their hitters are struggling.
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MLB reporter Jeff Passan did not mince words when discussing the state of the team:
“As mediocre as the Mets and Padres have been this season, no team comes close to the St. Louis Cardinals in terms of downright disappointment. They are a disaster. Five straight losses. A 27-42 record — the worst in the National League, better than only Oakland and Kansas City.”
Passan mentioned the New York Mets and San Diego Padres, both of whom have sub-.500 records despite spending more than most of the league. However, they’re both within shouting distance of making a run at the playoffs. The Cardinals play in one of the worst divisions in baseball and can’t make any headway.
Despite boasting two of last year’s three MVP finalists and the winner (Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, respectively), the Cardinals are one of the worst teams in baseball.
Nolan Arenado calls St. Louis Cardinals bad
After blowing another lead and losing to the San Francisco Giants (being swept in the process), Nolan Arenado came to terms with the St. Louis Cardinals’ reality: they’re not good.
He said after the game (via Clutch Points):
“I don’t know if you’d call it a stretch anymore. It’s just bad baseball. We have been playing bad baseball for a while now. Do I think we can play better baseball with the players we have in here? Sure. But that remains to be seen.”
The team has the third-worst record in baseball. They also have the talent to turn it around and fortunately, they’re less than nine games out. They are as far from first as the playoff New York Yankees are, so it’s far from over.