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Cards’ starting pitching needs to right ship
- Updated: August 4, 2016
CINCINNATI — Despite a flat finish to a road trip that opened with four wins in five games, the Cardinals return home having positioned themselves firmly in the National League Wild Card mix. They sit even with the Marlins for the second spot with 54 games ahead.
But in order to seal their sixth straight postseason berth, the Cards will need better from a rotation that has collectively faltered as of late. Mike Leake’s five-plus-inning start in Thursday’s 7-0 loss to the Reds represented the fifth time in six games that a St. Louis starter has been unable to record an out in the sixth. Leake had four chances to on Thursday, but all four of those hitters eventually came around to score.
“If you look at numbers, obviously you’re not going to be pleased,” said Leake, who has allowed 19 earned runs in his past three starts. “But with the way I’m throwing the ball and the way I feel like I’m progressing with my mechanics, I am getting better. I just try to get better every time I’m out there, and if it’s giving up seven runs, it’s giving up seven runs.”
Leake isn’t alone in his laboring, though. A Cardinals rotation that ranked eighth in the …
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