Pregame Post

Just how valuable is Wainwright's arm?

Bernie seems to think that the clubhouse has as many holes as the batting order.

Which brings us to the second issue: the lineup.

As manager Tony La Russa repeatedly reminds us, it's only April. Still, the numbers being posted by Cardinals outfielders are alarmingly weak. And that must change.

Overall, Cardinals outfielders are batting .210 with four homers and 18 RBIs.

Edmonds has 12 RBIs, but he's batting only .185 with 19 strikeouts in 54 at-bats.

The corner outfield spots are feeble, with one homer and five RBIs in 144 at-bats. How bad is it? Well, in 36 at-bats, Cardinals pitchers have one homer and four RBIs.

The Cardinals no longer have Reggie Sanders or Mark Grudzielanek. Larry Walker retired. Sanders is doing fair with the Royals but his numbers are not quite that impressive but he's better than Juan--who is improving. How does Bernie feel about the outfield?

In right field, Encarnacion is off to a terrible start. He has one RBI in 65 at-bats and is at the Mendoza Line with a .200 batting average. . There's nothing else to say. The Cardinals are still waiting on him to deliver.

In left field, So Taguchi is batting .209 with a woeful .279 on-base percentage. Larry Bigbie came over in a trade with Colorado, but he was a nonstarter after injuring a foot in spring training. In a rehab assignment at Memphis, Bigbie is three for 16 with seven strikeouts. Young Chris Duncan made a lot of noise with his power ball in camp, but he's struck out 22 times in 62 at-bats at Memphis. John Gall is batting .387 in Memphis with an OBP of .410 and 14 RBIs, but can't get a call-up to St. Louis. Meanwhile, Skip Schumaker (.171) remains with the big club.

Be worried. Jeff Suppan is starting today. He has struggled all season long. Suppan goes into the game with an 0-2 record and a 9.00 ERA. When Suppan pitches this season, the Cardinals are 0-3.

Pujols leads the majors with 12 home runs and 28 RBI's after 19 games. His 12th home run tied Ken Keltner with taking 19 games to hit 12 out of the park in 1948. It took Mike Schmidt only 15 games in 1976.

Milestone watch:
Mark Mulder needs 1 win for 100 career wins.
Jim Edmonds and Albert Pujols need 7 home runs for 220 Cardinal homers (4th)