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Who Will Take the Mound for St. Louis Cardinals in a Potential Wild Card Game?

By Trent Richardet

Aug 23, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Alex Reyes (61) pitches to a New York Mets batter during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. The Mets won 7-4. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 23, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Alex Reyes (61) pitches to a New York Mets batter during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. The Mets won 7-4. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
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Apr 20, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Carlos Martinez (18) delivers a pitch in the game against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 20, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Carlos Martinez (18) delivers a pitch in the game against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

Carlos Martinez has made a great case to start the Wild Card game.

The case for Carlos Martinez to start in this game is a strong one. He’s had a solid campaign, notching 15 wins with only nine losses and an ERA at 3.15. When Carlos is on, he’s got great stuff. If you pair his 95+ mile-an-hour fastball with his nasty curveball, teams are gonna have a hard time guessing which is coming on any given pitch.

Martinez always takes the mound with emotion, and at times it backfires and results in control issues, as his walks per nine innings have increased this year to 3.3 from 3.16 last year. Over the course of a long season, you’ll take the good with the bad, especially when the good outweighs the bad for a good 75-80 percent of the time, but when it comes to winning one single game in order for your entire 162-game schedule to mean anything, Martinez’s emotions worry me.

That’s why you have to have a backup plan.

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