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National League Central may have the best race in MLB

By Carlos Nazario

Oct 3, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday (7) reacts after he hits a three run home run in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game one of the 2014 NLDS playoff baseball game at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 3, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Matt Holliday (7) reacts after he hits a three run home run in the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers in game one of the 2014 NLDS playoff baseball game at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
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Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

2. St. Louis Cardinals (91-71)

The St. Louis Cardinals have been the class of the NL Central. After a slow start last season, they got hot and took over the division. They held off the Pirates to win the division.

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    • A key to the Cardinals this season will be the health of their pitchers. Michael Wacha was their second best pitcher behind Adam Wainwright. He got off to a great start in 2014 with a 2.14 ERA, but then suffered a scapular stress fracture that sidelined him for over two months.

    When he came back he wasn’t the same. In five starts since his return, he went as long as five innings in just one of them. He was relegated to the bullpen afterwards.

    Wacha says he is feeling fine now, but that type of injury is tricky. Brandon McCarthy is the only other pitcher with that injury, and he’s battled after-effects and other fractures almost on a yearly basis ever since.

    Wacha hasn’t thrown more than 149 2/3 innings in any of his three seasons, and the Cardinals will likely restrict his innings this season. We’ll see what happens when the pennant chase heats up though.

    Speaking of Wainwright, he just came down with an abdominal strain. He will miss some time before he throws in spring training, and his status for MLB’s season opener against the Cubs on April 5 is in question.

    If Wainwright stays healthy, the Cards still have a very good front-end rotation with Wainwright, Lance Lynn and John Lackey. The back-end with Wacha and either Carlos Martinez or Marcos Gonzalez could be a trouble spot.

    The Cards suffered a blow late last year with the death of right fielder Oscar Taveras. They went out and traded for Jason Heyward from Atlanta.

    Heyward could walk after the season, but the Cardinals have a good prospect to fill in should that occur. Stephen Piscotty has impressed in the minors. He hits .288/.355/.406 in Tripe-A Memphis last season, and he is a plus defender. In any case, he will debut with the major league club sometime this season.

    The Cardinals will be fighting for another division title this season. It will go down to the wire, but I feel they will fall short eventually. They will pick up a Wild Card berth, and I expect them to go far in the playoffs.

    Next: 1. Pittsburgh Pirates

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