Fansided

These teams can still save their season if they get hot in June

By Joshua Sadlock

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - APRIL 9: Joe Mauer #7 of the Minnesota Twins reacts to striking out against the Houston Astros during the sixth inning of the game on April 9, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Astros defeated the Twins 2-0. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - APRIL 9: Joe Mauer #7 of the Minnesota Twins reacts to striking out against the Houston Astros during the sixth inning of the game on April 9, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Astros defeated the Twins 2-0. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /
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MINNEAPOLIS, MN- MAY 16: Marcell Ozuna #23 of the St. Louis Cardinals looks on against the Minnesota Twins on May 16, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Cardinals defeated the Twins 7-5. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Marcell Ozuna
MINNEAPOLIS, MN- MAY 16: Marcell Ozuna #23 of the St. Louis Cardinals looks on against the Minnesota Twins on May 16, 2018 at Target Field in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Cardinals defeated the Twins 7-5. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Marcell Ozuna /

4. St. Louis Cardinals

Sitting at 28-23 and in third place in the NL Central, the St. Louis Cardinals are hardly out of playoff contention, but their place in the standings could be much higher with a competent offense. The Cardinals rotation ranks third in MLB with a 3.10 ERA, led by Carlos Martinez, Miles Mikolas, a resurgent Michael Wacha and young guns Luke Weaver and Jack Flaherty. The rotation is young, and it’s good.

The same cannot be said of the St. Louis offense.

Putting runs on the board was the biggest problem for the Cardinals last year, and the trade for All-Star outfielder Marcell Ozuna was supposed to fix all that. Instead, Ozuna has struggled to get untracked with his new team and is hitting just .264/.306/.342 with three home runs and 23 RBI. Perhaps Ozuna is just pressing in an attempt to make up for the lack of production from Dexter Fowler (.157/.276/.288) and Matt Carpenter (.221/.332/.423). Tommy Pham and Jose Martinez have kept the Cardinals afloat while they wait for the big guns to heat up and Paul DeJong to recover from his broken hand.

The Cardinals are an easy pick to get hot in June and keep pace with the Milwaukee Brewers. The pedigree is there for Ozuna, Fowler and Carpenter. The pitching staff and bullpen have been so good that all the Cardinals need to get themselves off to the races is a league-average offense. St. Louis doesn’t necessarily need to “bounce back” like the other teams on this list, but they are not playing up to their full capability.

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