I like to joke with my old college roommates that the St. Louis Cardinals have but four good players:
Albert Pujols, Matt Holliday, Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter.
That number was quickly reduced to three with the preseason injury to Wainwright that required season-ending Tommy John surgery. Carpenter’s terrible start (one win and a 4.58 ERA as of May 27) all but takes that number down to two.
Throw in a contract year for Pujols and an appendectomy or two for Holliday, and we’re fast on our way to seeing that number reach zero!
The Cardinals are 31-21 right now, good for first in the National League Central. Can this be maintained? The answer is absolutely not, and I’ll give you four reasons why.