Game # 31

PIRATES 2, CARDINALS 0

What is going on with this team?

The Cardinals were shut down tonight by yet another mediocre pitcher; this time it was Jeff Karstens, taking his career 5.20 ERA and joining the infamous Bud Norris Club (aka, the Cardinals' kryptonite). The Cardinals managed a measly three hits off of Karstens, who went six scoreless innings for his first win of the season. The Cardinals wasted a very fine game pitched by Jaime Garcia, who was forced into taking his second loss of the season. Garcia pitched six innings of one-run ball and struck out seven.

Matt Holliday had the night off because Tony La Russa was concerned about him aggravating his groin with the anticipation of wet weather for tonight's game. Holliday did pinch hit and pick up one of the four Cardinal hits.

I really don't know how to feel about this team. How concerning is this frequent dumps in production? Is there a definable problem? Could it be the fact that the Cardinals rely on video? The latter could be possible. The Cardinals' strong reliance on video could be an explanation to why the Cardinals can't hit under-the-radar pitchers. But I won't jump to conclusions.

Thankfully, it's early, and the Cardinals have plenty of time to evaluate their approach on hitting. There very well be an actual problem here. I am officially convinced.

Boxscore courtesy of mlb.com.