Why the Cardinals' rotation deserves more recognition

The Cardinals rotation is kind of like Wi-Fi.

It sits silently in the background, doing its job to make everything run smooth. It really only draws attention when something goes wrong.

When people talk about the Cardinals this year, you rarely hear them lead with the starting rotation. Jordan Walker and JJ Wetherholt have been exceptional, often swiping the spotlight and headlines, but the rotation has actually been among the best in baseball this season.

And it’s been getting better as the year goes on.

Entering play on Friday, the Cardinals' rotation owns the 10th-best ERA in MLB (4.09) with the ninth-most quality starts (37). It hasn’t always been flashy, ranking 28th in strikeout rate, but Cardinals starters have more often than not put the club in position to win.

Pitching often doesn’t get the flowers it deserves when the offense isn’t producing at a high level. Since June 24 (25 games), the Cardinals' offense is 28th in baseball in batting average and on-base percentage and 29th in slugging percentage. Over that same stretch, the Cardinals' rotation has the sixth-best ERA in baseball (3.47), even if it doesn’t always feel like it.

Kyle Leahy has been lights out during this stretch, posting a 0.71 ERA in his five starts since June 23 and finding his footing after an up-and-down start to the season. While Leahy isn’t going deep into starts, it’s hard to complain about just two runs allowed over 25 1/3 innings in that stretch.

Michael McGreevy continues to eat innings for St. Louis and do so while owning the 15th-best ERA among qualified starters (3.07). Almost exactly one year ago, McGreevy was finally placed in the Cardinals’ rotation on a full-time basis. And in his first full season, he’s become the leader of the group.

While Dustin May and Andre Pallante have hit rough patches on the mound after strong starts to the year, Matthew Liberatore has had a bit of a resurgence. He’s striking out 10.55 batters per nine innings during this stretch with a 3.80 ERA. It’s encouraging progress from an arm who was searching for answers most of the season.

Even with uncertainty about whether all four of those starters will still be here after the Trade Deadline, the Cardinals have two wild cards up their sleeve.

The first is Hunter Dobbins, who made his fourth start of the season for St. Louis on Wednesday, shutting out the Angels over six innings. Dobbins has filled the role that McGreevy held last season -- an MLB-ready arm who makes spot starts until a full-time opportunity opens up. Manager Oliver Marmol said the plan is for Dobbins to stay up for as long as the club doesn’t need extra bullpen help, and there’s a good chance he’s lined up to grab a rotation spot if another starter is moved at the Deadline.

The other one to watch is Quinn Mathews, the Cardinals’ No. 7 prospect according to MLB Pipeline. Over his last nine Triple-A starts, Mathews has a 1.82 ERA with 57 strikeouts in 49 1/3 innings. His most glaring weakness this season has been his command, but he’s walked just three batters over his last three starts, and is now knocking on the door of an MLB debut.

The Cardinals have a critical homestand this week after stumbling to a 2-5 start out of the All-Star break. With the Reds and Cubs coming to town, the Cardinals will need to get back to stacking wins if they want to continue the positive momentum that’s been following their surprise contender status this season. But even with a strong showing, they may still be destined to move pieces from their Major League roster to continue building for the future.

Even so, the rotation has shown over 102 games that it can give the club a chance to win on a consistent basis. The pressure remains on the offense to put up runs and the bullpen to do a better job holding leads.

In the meantime, the rotation will look to stay true to its identity: Steady, dependable and keeping the whole operation running smoothly.