The St. Louis Cardinals came into the 2025 season with some seriously low expectations. They opted to let a handful of veterans, including Paul Goldschmidt, walk away in free agency while also dangling players like Nolan Arenado on the trade block. Every move they made seemed to indicate they were ready to rebuild and start from scratch.
But the rebuild hasn't exactly gone to plan, and that's not a bad thing. The Cardinals are winning a lot more games than anybody expected. They're playing complete baseball with an elite defense and a high-powered offense. Young stars like Masyn Winn and Iván Herrera have burst onto the scene this season.
But the team has quietly turned one of its weaknesses into a strength this season and not too many people are taking notice of it.
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Cardinals' pitching rotation has quietly become a strength
The Cardinals' pitching staff has been great this season. Before I dive too deep into this, I want to note that the pitching staff has been supported by the best defense in baseball. The Cardinals have stars like Nolan Arenado, Wilson Contreras, Victor Scott II, and Winn who have all shown flashes of defensive excellence this season. As a result, the pitching staff is performing better.
But it's not all on the defense.
Coming into the season, there were some low expectations for the Cardinals' staff. Matthew Liberatore was transitioning from being mainly a bullpen arm to a starter. He's transitioned flawlessly and has been the team's ace so far.
Sonny Gray was seemingly the only reliable piece on the staff. He's continued to be a consistent force this season for the Cardinals.
Erick Fedde was written off by a lot of people as a one season wonder. But he's continued to be competitive for the Cardinals this season and his production has been a big piece of the puzzle for St. Louis.
Andre Pallante isn't an All-Star level arm yet, but he's looking great as he gets more experience as a starting pitcher. The righty has continued to give the Cardinals quality starts throughout the season.
Miles Mikolas was regarded as one of the worst qualified starting pitchers in baseball heading into this season because that's what he's been in the past. This season, besides one start, Mikolas has been excellent for the Cardinals. He holds a 2.20 ERA in three starts this month.
All in all, the Cardinals pitching staff has completely exceeded expectations this season. To make matters even better, the Cardinals have a lot of young pitching talent coming up through the minor leagues, too.