The St. Louis Cardinals have created a statistic that has made baseball history, only being seen once before in the game. Despite being under .500 at a 4-5 record, the Cardinals have recorded at least 10 hits in all 9 games this season. The last time this happened was thanks to the Cleveland, then Indians, in 1999, where they hit that number in the first 10 games. Can the Cardinals keep it up?
Minnesota Twins Series
In game one the Cardinals had 10 hits, featuring two-hit games from Lars Nootbaar, Brendan Donovan, Nolan Arenado, and Ivan Herrera, with Alec Burleson and Jordan Walker adding one hit each.
Game two saw four more two-hit games, again from Nootbaar, Arenado, and Herrera, with Victor Scott II joining in on the fun. Donavan and Walker both had one hit to make it back-to-back 10-hit games for the Red Birds.
Game three had 10 hits, yet again, but this time, Nolan Gorman and Pedro Pagés provided most of the pop with three hits each. Donovan, Arenado, Burleson, and Scott II added one hit each to reach the double-digit plateau.
Los Angeles Angels Series
The Cardinals upped the ante a tiny bit in game one against the Angels, tallying 11 hits. Multi-hit efforts from Nootbaar, Walker, Scott II, and Luken Baker combined with one hit from Arenado, Donovan, and Burleson sadly left the Cardinals with their first loss.
With the calendar flipped to April for game two, another 11 hits were secured. Another two from Nootbaar, Walker, and Scott II fueled the offense, while Burleson, Baker, Gorman, Arenado, Pages, and Michael Siani added one hit to the mix.
The rubber match of the series saw an increased hit total of 12. Hits, all home runs from Herrera and 2 from Nootbaar, Arenado, and Masyn Winn helped the Cardinals to a 12-5 win. Walker, Scott II, and Wilson Contreras added a hit each.
Boston Red Sox Series
Opening Day at Fenway Park in Boston saw another increase to 13 hits for the Cardinals. Donovan and Burleson tallied 3 hits, Nootbaar and Winn both had 2, and Contreras, Arenado, and Herrera slapped one each.
The first game of Sunday’s doubleheader was led by 2-hit efforts by Pagés, Walker, and Winn. Arenado, Baker, Scott II, Donovan, and Thomas Saggese rounded out the hit parade at 11 total for the Cardinals.
The second game saw a huge 18-7 loss, but the Cardinals were still able to keep the steak alive with another 12 hits. Three from Donovan, two from Contreras, and Winn kept the pace while Nootbaar, Arenado, Saggese, Burleson, and Walker filled in the rest with one hit each.
Notes
While the 4-5 record is nothing to write home about, the hitting prowess the Cardinals have shown proves that they are seeing the ball well. With success at the plate being as consistent as can be, it’s up to the pitching staff to keep the opposing batters off the bases. The Cardinals have been a question mark in the National League Central for the last few years. Hopefully, the bats coming alive is a good sign for the 2025 season.
