2 Cardinals who’ve earned an apology from their doubters, and 1 not quite there
By Josh Wilson
Cardinals who earned apology from doubters: Nolan Arenado
Boy oh boy, what was going on with Nolan Arenado to start the year? At one point from mid-April to early May, he was 5-for-52 with an OPS of .235.
When your OPS looks like a batting average, you’re in something worse than a slump. Fans were left wondering whether or not Arenado’s performance was, in fact, just a slump he would swing his way out of or if there was something deeper to be concerned about. Remember, Turner Ward was promoted over the winter as the team’s batting coach, so was this a sign of his new imprint on the team being something to be concerned about?
Valid questions to ask given that Arenado has historically had no problem raking at the plate.
Well, since, Arenado has been mostly smooth sailing. He had a five-game stint without a hit, but ultimately has a .974 OPS since May 3, and has hit 10 out of the park since the start of May. We’re early in June but he’s well above 1.0 in OPS this month.
Since May 1, he has a .326 average with two outs, the best on the team among the eight Cardinals who have had 30 such plate appearances in that frame.
Arenado is back.