MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – JUNE 23: Dakota Hudson of the St. Louis Cardinals throws a pitch in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on June 23 in Milwaukee. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
With the postseason getting closer, the Cardinals will have several decisions regarding who will be on the roster in October.
The Cardinals are 83-58 heading into a crucial stretch of games in St. Louis against the Brewers and the Reds. It will be interesting to watch who steps up in the coming weeks to make it easier for manager Oli Marmol and the Cardinals to create a postseason roster.
This season has featured an extraordinary roster that has been a mixture of legendary players like Albert Pujols, Adam Wainwright, and Yadier Molina, to a current set of All-Stars in Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt to a group of up-and-coming stars in Nolan Gorman, Dylan Carlson, and Lars Nootbaar. It’s been amazing to watch, and have high hopes that this group can accomplish something huge.
But, as games go on, it’s becoming easier to see who won’t even be close to making the postseason roster. Let’s look at some who won’t even sniff the postseason roster.
Dakota Hudson will not be on the Cardinals’ postseason roster
When Jack Flaherty was reinstated to the Cardinals roster earlier this month, the Cardinals decided to take the opportunity to demote Dakota Hudson to AAA Memphis. In 24 games started for the Cardinals in 2022, Hudson has a 7-7 record in 126 innings pitched and 72 strikeouts.
Since going to Memphis, he’s started in two games for the Redbirds with a 1-0 record in 13.2 innings pitched. He’s struck out 14 batters for the batters.
While it’s nice to see that he’s made some improvements since joining Memphis, I don’t believe that is an indicator that he needs to return to St. Louis anytime soon. The fans have seen what Hudson is this season, and it’s been frustratingly inconsistent.
The team has Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Flaherty, Jordan Montgomery, and Jose Quintana. They will possibly get Steven Matz soon. The team has many options in the bullpen for long relief.
Here’s hoping the Cardinals decide to shut down the possibility of him coming back to St. Louis so that he can work to improve what he needs to now and be ready to shine in 2023.