ST. LOUIS CARDINALS NOTES:
RECENT REDBIRDS: The defending NL Central Division Champion St. Louis Cardinals continue first road-trip (MIL-3, COL-3) of the season tonight with the middle game of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field…prior to last night’s series-opening defeat, the Cardinals dropped 2-of-3 last weekend in Milwaukee and have lost 6 of their last 7 after winning their season-opening series against Toronto…the Cardinals need a win tonight to avoid their first 3-8 start since 2017…the Cardinals have not won consecutive games at Coors Field in the same calendar year since back-to-back wins here Sept. 19-20, 2016…this week marks the Cardinals lone series visit to Denver, their first games here in the month of April since 2003…the Rockies will visit St. Louis for a three-game series August 4-6.
TAP THE ROCKIES: St. Louis has won their season series vs. the Rockies in each of the 12 seasons (2010-2022) and 21 times in 27 seasons since Colorado joined MLB as an expansion team in 1993. WILD, WILD WEST: Since 2019, the Cardinals are 38-12 at home vs. the National League West, but just 19-30 on the road.
MILE HIGH HIKE: The Cardinals are one of just three NL teams that have never had a pitcher throw a complete game at Coors Field…the Cardinals (103 games played at Coors), Cubs (99) and Mets (98) make up that group…the Cardinals, who also had no route-going efforts in their 12 games played in 1993-94 at Denver’s Mile High Stadium, also lack a complete game effort in their 57 all-time games at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park.
POUNDING THE PORT SIDE: The Cardinals are batting a combined .328 vs. left-handed pitching this season, ranking 3rd in MLB behind only the Braves & Nationals, both at .330…Paul Goldschmidt is pacing that attack with a .556 mark…four others are hitting at a .333 clip or better vs. lefties.
BURLEY CYCLE: Rookie Alec Burleson collected his 2nd career professional triple last night, and his first in the majors…by doing so, Burley became the first Cardinal to hit for the season cycle in 2023 with at least one single, double, triple and homer…Burleson also extended
his hitting streak to 6 games, the 5th longest active streak in the NL.
INNING BY INNING: The Cardinals have struck for a season-high 12 runs in their 3rd innings and 10 in the 4th…they are still looking to score a run in both the 2nd inning and 5th inning this season…they have left a combined 19 runners on base in their 2nd & 5th innings.
WALKER MAKES HISTORY: Rookie Jordan Walker singled in the 7th inning last night to extend his hitting streak to 10 games, establishing a Cardinals rookie record for the longest hitting streak to begin a career, as he surpassed outfielder Magneuris Sierra (9 games, 2017).
SPLENDID: Jordan Walker’s 10-game hit streak to begin his career is just the 2nd all-time by a player age 20 years or younger… Philadelphia Athletics outfielder Eddie Murphy hit safely in each of his first 12 games in 1912 at age 20…Walker last night passed Ted Williams (1939, age 20) who hit in 9-straight games to launch his Hall of Fame career…current Cardinals Bench Coach Joe McEwing holds the Cardinals franchise rookie record for longest hitting streak, doing so in 25 games (June 8-July 4, 1999), the 8th-longest hit streak in franchise history…Walker, Randy Arozarena, Bryson Stott and Myles Straw entered play today with the majors’ longest hit active streaks.
JORDAN & JUMPSTEADY: Jordan Walker’s 13 hits in his 10 games to begin the season are the most by a Cardinals player age 20 or younger in any 10-game span since Garry “Jumpsteady” Templeton collected 13 hits in 10-game span from Sept. 22 to Oct. 3 [1] in 1976.
ROOKIE RANKINGS: Rookie outfielder Jordan Walker, the Cardinals 1st round draft selection in 2020, is the MLB rookie leader in hits (13) and in batting (.342) among rookies; he ranks 3rd in OPS (.943) behind the Dodgers’ James Outman (1.262) and Brewers’ Garrett Mitchell (1.064)…his 8 RBI rank 3rd behind the Angels’ Logan O’Hoppe (9) and the Dodgers’ Outman (9).
CLOSE TO CARGO: Nolan Arenado who hit his 1st homer of the season and 300th of this career Sat. at Milwaukee, is currently ranked 4th all-time in Coors Field homers (138), one back of Carlos “Cargo” Gonzalez (139)…he’s HR’d twice at Coors as a member of the Cardinals OFF THE BAT: According to Baseball Savant, St. Louis ranks 2nd in MLB in hard hit balls of 95+mph (125) to the Dodgers (135) and 6th in average exit velocity (90.2 mph)…Jordan Walker (17), Paul Goldschmidt (17) & Nolan Arenado (16) are pacing the team in hard hit balls
TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP MILES MIKOLAS (0-1, 9.64)
TONIGHT’S GAME
• The 2022 N.L. All-Star is making his 3rd start of 2023, 146th career appearance & 118th career start.
• Had a 6-10 mark with 4.10 ERA in 19 appearances (18 starts) on the road last season, working 6.0+ IP in 10 of those starts (all quality).
• Has walked 112 batters over his first 107 starts with St. Louis. Among Cardinals starters in their first 107 starts with the franchise, only Bob Tewksbury (85) has issued fewer.
• Has allowed six of his 10 runs in the first inning (27.00 ERA), and yielded a hit to the leadoff batter in both starts.
• Was one of 10 MLB pitchers and two Cardinals (Wainwright) with a perfect 1.000 fielding pct. (31 total chances) in 2022. Hasn’t made an error since 8/2/18 vs. COL.
• Signed a two-year contract extension through 2025 on March 24.
LAST TIME OUT
• Suffered his first loss of the season after allowing five runs on nine hits in last Wednesday’s 5-2 defeat to the Braves at Busch Stadium. Atlanta jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the opening frame. Settled in with 2.0 scoreless innings before departing.
2023
• Drew his 2nd career Opening Day start (3/30) and had a no-decision in the Cardinals 10-9 loss to Toronto that featured five lead changes.
• Recored his 500th career strikeout in the National League on Opening Day.
• Was a 3-0 with 0.00 ERA in three Grapefruit League starts this season, allowing just one unearned run in his 12.0 IP. 123 of his 133 pitches thrown this spring were strikes
• Pitched for Team USA during World Baseball Classic, totaling 6.0 IP in two relief appearances, including a 4.0 inning stint in the American’s semi-final win over Cuba.
CAREER
• Set a new career-high in innings pitched (202.1) in 2022, surpassing his previous high of 200.2 IP in 2018, his first year with St. Louis. He was one of five MLB pitchers with 200+ IP last year and one of eight pitchers with multiple seasons of 200+ IP since 2018.
• Started Game 2 of NL Wild Card Series last year, and suffered a 2-0 defeat to the Phillies.
• Although he missed all of the 2020 season, his 41-35 mark as a Cardinal is 2nd on the team to Adam Wainwright (49-36) in both wins & losses since 2018.
• St. Louis is 64-44 (.593 win pct.) in his 108 career outings (108 starts) since joining the organization in 2018.
• Is lifetime 20-16 with a 2.79 ERA (335.0 IP) at Busch Stadium. His 2.71 ERA ranks as the T-4th-lowest in Busch Stadium III history (minimum 200.0 innings) trailing only Shelby Miller (2.46), Dakota Hudson (2.54) and Chris Carpenter (2.61). 2022
NL Ranks: Innings Pitched (202.1, 3rd), Starts (32, T3rd), Quality Starts (22, 3rd), Complete Games (1, T3rd), WHIP (1.03, 10th), Batters faced (805, 3rd), Baserunners/9 IP (9.56, 10th), BB/9 IP (1.73, 5th), Strikeout/Walk Ratio (3.92, 11th), Pitches Thrown (3,152, 3rd), Pitches/Game (95.5, 7th), Pitch Tempo (14.9 sec/pitch – bases empty, 20th)
• Selected to 2nd NL All-Star team (also 2018) as replacement for Corbin Burnes (DNP).
• Made a 3.0-inning relief appearance in his final regular-season outing on 10/3 at PIT, his first relief outing since July 31, 2013 vs. CIN w/SD; a span of 115 starts.
• Carried a no-hitter 8.2 innings into the game vs. PIT (6/14-Game 2) before Cal Mitchell broke it up with a ground-rule double.
COLORADO ROCKIES NOTES:
WHAT’S HAPPENING
• The Colorado Rockies continue their first homestand of the season with the second of three games against the St. Louis Cardinals … split a four-game series against the Washington Nationals to begin the homestand.
• The Rockies won last night’s series opener 7-4 behind a season-high 13 hits, including at least one hit from every member of the starting lineup … starting pitcher Germán Márquez recorded the 65th victory of his career, passing Jeff Francis for the third-most wins in franchise history.
• Following this series and an off day on Thursday, Colorado will head to Seattle for three games, Friday-Sunday before returning home to host the Pittsburgh Pirates April 17-19.
PRIDE OF THOMAS JEFFERSON
• Tonight’s starter Kyle Freeland enters the game 2-0 without allowing a run across 12.2 innings pitched this year … it is the third-longest scoreless streak by a Rockies starter to begin a season in franchise history, trailing Jason Jennings (13.0 IP, 2001) and Jhoulys Chacín (14.1 IP, 2010) … the last pitcher in the Majors to begin a season with three consecutive starts of at least six scoreless innings was James Paxton in 2017, a feat no Rockies starter has ever accomplished.
TIME FLIES WHEN YOU’RE HAVING FUN
• Through 11 games, the Rockies average game time of 2:32 is slightly below the league average of 2:37 … in 2022, the Rockies did not play a game shorter than 2:32 until their 21st game of the season, a 4-3 win over Cincinnati on April 30 (2:31) … 16 of their games across that span were over three hours … Colorado has yet to play a game in 2023 that has lasted longer than three hours (longest: 2:56).
• The Rockies’ shortest game of the season was a 2:03 affair April 2 in San Diego, the 12th-shortest game in Rockies’ history, the shortest since a 1:58 time of game on July 1, 2008 … in that contest, Aaron Cook tossed a 79-pitch complete-game shutout against the Padres at Coors Field, one of only nine CGSO tossed at Coors Field at the time.
• The shortest game in team history came on June 30, 2006 at Seattle when the Rockies topped the Mariners 2-0 in 1:52.
THE BATS ARE ALIVE
• The Rockies have recorded double-digit hits in each of the last four games and rank fourth in the Majors with 102 hits on the season … have recorded double digit hits in four-straight games, their longest streak since a four-game string Aug. 19-23, 2022 … have not recorded 10-plus hits in five or more consecutive games since a six-game streak Aug. 3-8, 2021.
• The Rockies’ 26 doubles are tied for the third-most in the Majors … six different Rockies players (Bryant, Daza, Diaz, McMahon, Montero, Tovar) have at least three doubles, tied with the Mariners for the most players with three or more doubles in the Majors.
WHAT’S IN THE CARDS
• The Rockies host the Cardinals for the second of six games between the two clubs this season … will travel to St. Louis for a three-game set Aug. 4-6.
• Colorado went 2-4 against St.. Louis in 2022, winning two of three at Coors Field Aug. 9-11 and getting swept in St. Louis Aug. 16-18.
• Colorado is 104-126 all-time against the Cardinals, holding a home record of 62-53 with a +81 run differential (738-657) … have won each of the last three home series vs. St. Louis since 2019.
• The Rockies are 42-73 all-time in St. Louis, and have not won a series there since 2009 … are 6-35 overall at Busch Stadium since 2010, including 0-12 since Aug. 1, 2018.
CB AS DH
• Charlie Blackmon has gone 10-for-29 (.345) with one double, one home run and three RBI in seven games as the designated hitter … his .345 batting average ranks second in the Majors among qualified hitters playing as the DH while his on-base percentage (.407) ranks third and his slugging (.520) ranks fifth.
• Since the universal DH was introduced at the start of 2022, Blackmon is hitting .274 (98-for-358) in 87 games as the designated hitter, good for the third-highest average in the Majors while hitting as the DH (min. 300 AB) … was a National League Silver Slugger finalist at DH in 2022.
KBOOM
• Kris Bryant has reached base safely in 18-straight games dating back to July 24, 2022 at Milwaukee, hitting safely in 16 of 18 games across that span (.333/.410/.478) … it is the fourth-longest active on-base streak in the Majors and the second-longest in the NL.
• Bryant has reached base in 48 of his 53 games played with the Rockies.
STARTING PITCHER KYLE FREELAND LHP
DENVER KID
• The 29-year-old Denver native and graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School will make his third start of the season today, his second at Coors Field.
• The Rockies announced on April 19, 2022 that they agreed to a five-year contract extension with Freeland covering the 2022-26 seasons … the extension includes two arbitration years and three years of free agency.
• The 29-year-old Denver native graduated from Thomas Jefferson High School, 15 minutes south of Coors Field … selected in the first round of the 2014 First-Year Player Draft (eighth overall), the third player in University of Evansville history to be drafted in the first round.
HOPE OPENER x3:
• With last Thursday’s start, Freeland became the franchise leader for starts in a Home Opener with three (also: 2017 and 2022 both vs. Los Angeles-NL) … tossed 6.2 shutout innings against the Nationals, allowing four hits with two walks and five strikeouts.
• Started Opening Day at Coors Field last season, April 8 vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers … made his Major League debut in the Rockies’ Home Opener in 2017, April 7 vs. the Dodgers … allowed one run across six innings in the 2-1 win.
KNOW WHEN TO FOLD EM
• Made consecutive starts against the Cardinals in 2022, one at Coors Field and another at Busch Stadium … combined for a 7.84 ERA (10.1 IP, 9 ER) with 17 hits, two home runs, three walks and five strikeouts.
• First start came Aug. 10 at home, allowing six runs on 10 hits across 4.1 IP, walking two and striking out one in a 9-5 Rockies loss … next start came Aug. 16 in St. Louis, logging a quality start with three runs allowed on seven hits over 6.0 IP, allowing two home runs with one walk and four strikeouts.
• 0-3 in five career starts against the Cardinals, pitching to a 4.88 clip (27.2 IP, 15 ER) with 11 walks and 17 strikeouts.
A HOT START
• After his start on Thursday, Freeland became the first pitcher in franchise history to toss at least six scoreless innings in each of his first two appearances of the season … was also the first Rockie since Jorge De La Rosa on April 9, 2010 to toss at least six scoreless innings in the Home Opener (7.0 IP vs. San Diego).
• Tossed six scoreless innings in his first start of the season on March 31 in San Diego … allowed just three hits while walking one and striking out one.
• His 12.2 inning scoreless streak to begin the season the third-longest by a starter in franchise history, trailing Jason Jennings (13.0 IP, 2001) and Jhoulys Chacín (14.1 IP, 2010).
• The last pitcher in the Majors to start a season with three consecutive starts of at least six scoreless innings was James Paxton back in 2017.
LAND OF THE FREE
• Appeared in two games for the USA in the World Baseball Classic, allowing two runs on three hits over 6.0 innings (3.00 ERA), striking out five and walking two.
• In the Championship Game vs. Japan, struck out WBC MVP Shohei Ohtani … Freeland’s 41 pitches in the game were the most by any pitcher who appeared during the contest.
• In three Cactus League starts, went 1-1 with a 5.79 ERA (9.1 IP, 6 ER) with one walk and five strikeouts.
THIS ‘N THAT
• Finished fourth in 2018 NL Cy Young Award voting going 17-7 with a 2.85 ERA (202.1 IP, 64 ER) … became the second pitcher in Rockies history to ever finish in the top five in Cy Young voting (also: Ubaldo Jiménez, third place in 2010).
• Pitched 8.1 no-hit innings on July 9, 2017 vs. Chicago-AL, the longest no-hit bid for a Rockies pitcher at Coors Field in franchise history.
THE YEAR TWENTY THOUSAND AND TWENTY-TWO (2022)
• Finished the season posting a 4.53 ERA across 31 starts … of those 31 starts, 13 of them were quality, his most in a full season since logging 24 quality starts in 2018 … set career-highs in runs allowed (96), earned runs (88).
SWEET HOME COLORADO
• Went 5-6 (Rockies 8-8) in 16 starts at home in 2022, posting a 6.00 ERA (87.0 IP, 58 ER) with 25 walks and 59 strikeouts … opponents hit .303 (107-for-353) against him with 31 doubles, seven triples and 11 home runs … second-highest home ERA in the Majors and sixth-highest opponent batting average.
• Holds a career mark of 29-24 with a 4.69 ERA (420.0 IP, 219 ER) in 79 career appearances, 76 starts, at Coors Field.
• Colorado is 45-31 all-time in his 76 starts in Denver … has worked six or more innings 45 times at home with 39 quality outings.
• In 2018, went 10-2 with a 2.40 ERA in 15 starts at Coors Field, the lowest ERA in a full season in franchise history … second starter in franchise history to record 10 wins at home (Jorge De La Rosa, three times).
• In his first 31 starts at Coors Field in 2017-18, went 16-10 with a 3.04 ERA (177.2 IP, 60 ER) with the Rockies going 20-11 … since 2019, has gone 13-14 with a 5.94 ERA (239.1 IP, 158 ER) in 45 starts at home (Rockies 25-20).
NOT SO ROCKIE ROAD
• Went 4-5 (Rockies 6-9) across 15 road starts last year, pitching to a 3.08 ERA (87.2 IP, 30 ER) with 28 walks and 72 strikeouts … opponents hit .257 against him (86-for-334) with 16 doubles, one triple and eight home runs … tossed six or more innings in seven of 15 road starts (six QS) … 3.08 road ERA was the sixth-lowest in Rockies history (minimum 13 road starts).
• Allowed a road season-high six runs July 9 at Arizona … in seven road starts following this outing, went 3-1 while posting a 1.94 ERA (41.2 IP, 9 ER) with 14 walks and 36 strikeouts.
• Received 35 total runs of support on the road for a 3.59 RSA … received two or fewer in 10 other starts, including no runs three times.
• 7-10 with a 3.26 ERA (154.2 IP, 56 ER) in 28 road starts since 2021 … has allowed 17 home runs on the road that span, five of them coming on June 11, 2021 at Cincinnati … road run support average of 3.32 over that span the third-lowest in the Majors (min. 25 starts).
YOU’RE GROUNDED
• Since his debut in 2017, Freeland ranks second in the Majors and leads the National League with 103 GIDP (Kyle Gibson leads the Majors with 113) … 1.10 GIDP/9 is the highest in the Majors across that same span.
FINISHED STRONG
• Has allowed three or fewer runs in 12 of his last 15 starts since July 25 of last season, compiling a 7-4 record with a 3.36 ERA (85.2 IP, 32 ER) … posted a 3.94 ERA (134.2 IP, 59 ER) in 23 starts since June 4.
• Spun five or more frames in 20 of his last 23 starts and six or more innings 15 times through this span (12 quality starts).
THE HOME RUN HIGHWAY
• His 19 home runs allowed in 2022 were his fewest since 2018 (17) … his 0.98 HR/9 was the 13th-lowest in the National League in 2022 … his lowest HR/9 rate since he posted a 0.76 clip in 2018.
FIRST THINGS FIRST
• Allowed 22 of his 96 runs in the first inning (23 percent) in 2022, tied for the eighth-most in the Majors … opponents slashed .328/.382/.492 in the first frame … 42 hits allowed in the first inning were the third-most in the Majors.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN FEELS
• Making the 153rd start of his career tonight three shy of tying Jason Jennings for the fifth-most in franchise history … passed Jon Gray for the sixth-most starts in his last start on April 6.
• His 51 career wins rank ninth in franchise history, two behind Jon Gray and Pedro Astacio with 53 each.
• Recorded the 600th strikeout of his career Aug. 10 vs. St. Louis, the eighth pitcher in franchise history to reach the mark … his 647 strikeouts are the seventh-most in franchise history … trails Jeff Francis in sixth with 742 strikeouts.
• Career 4.20 ERA ranks fourth all-time among Rockies starting pitchers (min. 75 starts) … 103 career opponent grounded into double plays are the fourth-most in franchise history (min. 50 GS).
