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The Texas Rangers (42-32) defeated the St. Louis Cardinals (47-37) 6-4 at Busch Stadium on Friday night.

Neal Cotts (4-1) earned the win in relief, Trevor Rosenthal (1-1) suffered his first loss and Joe Nathan tallied his 23rd save of the season.

Nelson Cruz led the way with three RBI and Derek Holland recovered from a rough start to throw seven innings and receive a no-decision.

Holland gave up four runs on four hits in the first two innings, but would settle down and retire the final 12 hitters he faced. He walked three and struck out four in a strong finish. He also went 0-for-2 at the plate with a walk and a run scored.

Tyler Lyons started for the Cardinals but only lasted 1.2 innings giving up four runs on three hits with three walks. Lyons is now winless in his last four starts. The Cardinals have the best record in baseball, but are just 5-5 in their last 10.

Allen Craig added a two-run double to increase his season total to 57 RBI. Carlos Beltran earned his 46th RBI in the first inning, but flew out to the wall in left-center field to end the game.

This was the Rangers’ first regular season trip to Busch Stadium and the first since Game 7 of the 2011 World Series.

The Rangers lost games six and seven in Busch Stadium en route to their second consecutive World Series loss. It was the Cardinals’ 11th World Series title.

Saturday’s Game 2 is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. and features Martin Perez (0-1) against Shelby Miller (8-4).

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The St. Louis Cardinals are 8-2 as home favorites of -175 to -225 during the 2013 season, which is important to consider when making your MLB picks Tuesday, as they continue their four-game series against the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium.

Sports bettors will find that the Cardinals are -200 favorites in the pro baseball odds (courtesy of SBR Forum), while the total sits at seven in the market.

Let’s take a closer look at this National League Central matchup from a betting perspective, while offering up a prediction along the way. 

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With the MLB First-Year Player Draft set to kick off Thursday evening, the St. Louis Cardinals are no doubt busy with their own mock drafts.

Touted for several years now as having one of the best farm systems in the MLB, the Cardinals‘ front office takes its drafts quite seriously.

The Cardinals have already seen a glimpse of what their top pick from 2012 can do at the major league level. Now it’s on to the future.

Will the Cardinals continue their tradition of chasing pitching in early rounds or will they find themselves in search of a position player?

Either way, the Cardinals could see the need to address multiple issues including pitching, middle infield depth and even replenishing outfield prospects with Oscar Taveras expected to be on the big league roster before season’s end.

Following are two picks the Cardinals could find themselves chasing on draft day and what makes them the right choice.

Round 1 (Pick 19)

Name: Chris Anderson

Position: RHP

School: Jacksonville University

Ht./Wt.: 6’4”/225 lbs.

Why this pick fits? Traditionally, especially after the steal they made with the 19^th pick in 2012, one could easily expect the Cardinals to snag another power arm that is reasonably close to being major league ready.

There’s little reason to expect them to stray from a plan that seems to be working. If by some chance he’s still available, 20-year-old Chris Anderson would be a good fit.

Anderson projects as a possible number two starter at the major league level. He has solid low-mid-90s fastball velocity with a sinker that could be his meal ticket to the big leagues.

The real question with Anderson is whether he will still be in the mix at 19. If he is, he may very well be their first pick-up.

Round 1 (Pick 28)

Name: Eric Jagielo

Position: 3B

School: Notre Dame

Ht./Wt.: 6’3”/215 lbs.

Why this pick fits? For their second pick in the first round Thursday evening, the Cardinals may well need to look toward something other than high-end pitching talent.

With Kolten Wong nearing his rise to the major leagues, Pete Kozma cementing his place on the big league roster and Matt Carpenter’s All-Star worthy early season performance, the Cardinals are getting thin on top notch infield talent.

Eric Jagielo could be the perfect fit for the team’s direction for the future. While there is a lot of contention regarding where he could be drafted, there’s no doubt this left-handed power bat could find his future in St. Louis.

There has been some debate about his glove, particularly at third base, but his bat makes him a viable candidate in the outfield or even at first base.

Regardless, the Cardinals could stand to start replenishing some minor league power and Jagielo, if he’s still around for the Cardinals second first round pick (28), may be just the man they need.

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The Cardinals have had a pretty amazing May to say the least. In fact, they have had the best record in Major League Baseball for a while now. And they couldn’t have gotten there without the performances of each individual player.

By comparing each major player’s statistics from the past 28 days to their 2012 numbers, I’ve attempted to measure their success against what is expected of them. 

With the Reds and the Pirates hot on the Cardinals’ trail, the NL Central is shaping up to be quite the race. And if the Cards continue to do what they’ve done in May, there’s a good chance exciting things will come to them.

Read on to find a grade and explanation for each position player for the month of May. 

*All statistics are current on baseball–reference.com as of June 1, 2013.*

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The St. Louis Cardinals entered the quarter-season mark of 2013 with the best record in baseball.

To say that exceeds the expectations of some is quite the understatement. Many, arguably most, baseball writers had the Cincinnati Reds picked as clear favorites to win the National League Central Division.

With the Cardinals estimated to end the season in the 85-win range, the fact that the team has amassed 25 wins by May 15 puts them well above expectations.

While it is extremely early to be thinking about the end of the season, the Cardinals are currently on pace to win 100 games.

Will they keep up this pace? That remains to be seen.

Every team has its slumps and streaks—the 2013 Cardinals will be no exception. Remember, even a team with an amazing 102-win record still loses 60 games a year.

With that said, the Cardinals have a lot of things on their side in 2013—most notably, their depth.

That depth has made all of the difference in where the Cardinals find themselves in the standings in mid-May.

Following is a breakdown grading the Cardinals on each aspect of their game.

All stats gathered from MLB.com.

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One day after St. Louis Cardinals rookie sensation Shelby Miller retired 27 straight Colorado Rockies en route to a one-hitter, Adam Wainwright nearly tossed a no-hitter in his own right. His bid was broken up in the eighth inning, but his dominance and Colorado’s incompetence are something to behold.

The dynamic pitching tandem combined to retire 40 consecutive batters, which matched a Major League Baseball record, according to MLB.com’s Paul Casella.

Despite the fact that the Rockies are the highest-scoring team in the National League this season with 169 runs and boast stars such as Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki, Wainwright and Miller somehow managed to make Colorado look like a little league team.

After allowing a leadoff single to Eric Young Jr. on Friday night, Miller was perfect throughout the rest of the game. Wainwright added to that by carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning before Rockies rookie third baseman Nolan Arenado spoiled things with a one-out single. Wainwright also allowed a hit to Dexter Fowler in the ninth inning to finish with a two-hitter complete game.

According to MLB.com, the Rockies were hitless in 50 plate appearances between Young’s single on Friday night and Arenado‘s base knock on Saturday afternoon. Although Wainwright was unable to punctuate it with a no-hitter, he and Miller registered two of the most dominant performances in the league this season—back to back.

Not only did Wainwright and Miller combine to allow a mere three singles and one walk, but they also struck out a total of 20 Rockies. Miller punched out 13 and Wainwright added seven, so it isn’t as if Colorado was getting unlucky. There were plenty of swings and misses, which means both Miller and Wainwright had electric stuff.

MLB has a long and storied history, so it’s possible that a team has struggled more than the Rockies at the plate over two consecutive games, but Rockies announcer Drew Goodman has never seen anything like it.

It would be easy to pile on the Rockies at this point, but Miller and Wainwright have arguably formed the best one-two pitching punch in the league this season. Miller is 5-2 with a sparkling 1.58 ERA, while Wainwright is 5-2 with a 2.30 ERA. They have been turning in great performances since the beginning of the year and just happened to pitch their best two days in a row against the same club.

If it wasn’t already apparent, it is now clear that Wainwright is fully back from the Tommy John surgery that sidelined him two years ago. He wasn’t the same pitcher last year, finishing 14-13 with a 3.94 ERA, but he has returned to ace status.

Wainwright added to his already-impressive career numbers on Saturday, as it was his third career two-hit shutout and sixth shutout overall, according to the Cardinals’ official Twitter feed.

As for the Rockies, it’s safe to say that they’ll need to turn things around quickly in order to remain in the mix in the competitive NL West. The Rockies trail the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers by two games with a record of 19-17, as they have lost four consecutive games and are 3-7 over their past 10 contests. It isn’t yet time to hit the panic button, but the Rockies can’t afford to continue playing this way.

Colorado is above .500 because of its hitting, but that hasn’t been apparent over the past two games. The Rockies simply don’t have the pitching necessary to thrive when the bats go cold, and there obviously isn’t a pitcher in the world who can win games when they receive absolutely no run support.

The Cardinals are set to host the Rockies again on Sunday afternoon, and lefty Jaime Garcia will be on the mound for St. Louis. He has been spectacular this season, just like Miller and Wainwright, and is 4-1 with a 2.15 ERA. He relies on pitching to contact more than striking hitters out, so the Rockies will have every opportunity to break out of their slump.

If the past two days are any indication, though, Colorado could be in for more headaches on Sunday. Miller allowed one hit on Friday, and Wainwright gave up just two on Saturday. Is a three-hitter in the cards for Garcia?

It’s highly unlikely, but the highest-scoring team in the National League totaling three hits in two days was unlikely as well. The Rockies are used to playing in thin air in Colorado, but they are on the brink of reaching rarefied air if their hitting woes go on any longer.

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A broken-bat bloop from Colorado Rockies right fielder Eric Young Jr. is the only thing that separated Shelby Miller from a perfect game Friday night.

The St. Louis Cardinals No. 5 starter got his fifth win, but that statement doesn’t even touch the gravity of his performance.

Miller dominated from the moment he took the mound. He owned the entire strike zone with ridiculous control and maintained his velocity through all 113 pitches, topping out with a four-seam fastball clocked at 97 mph.

He didn’t look like a 22-year-old rookie who was still a little rough around the edges. He looked like a seasoned veteran, well-poised and on a mission.

As Miller stepped back onto the field for the final three outs of a game many big league pitchers will never experience, you could sense the energy. His team wanted it for him as much as he wanted it for himself.

In the end, he sent 27 straight batters back to the bench with their heads hanging low.

While he’s only made seven starts this season, Miller is the real deal, and he’s just getting started.

Friday’s start showed people outside of St. Louis that this kid is the top early contender for NL Rookie of the Year honors.

Here are a few notes regarding Miller’s early-season performance and why it’s time to take notice.

Low ERA

On the surface, finishing with a 1.58 ERA may not be a big shock early in the season, but major league hitters simply aren’t hitting him.

Even when they do hit him, they’re not stringing together hits. As a result, in 45.2 innings, he’s given up only eight earned runs on 29 hits.

In Friday night’s game, the frustration in the eyes of the batters said everything you need to know about Miller’s start to the season.

Walk-to-Strikeout Rate

Miller has racked up only 11 walks to go with 51 strikeouts. That point I mentioned a moment ago? This number also illustrates it quite well.

While strikeout pitchers haven’t been the norm for the Cardinals in recent years, they definitely have one in Miller. The lesson on pitching to contact was one Miller must have missed.

His 13 strikeout performance tied an all-time Cardinals record for most K’s in a game by a rookie.

While the strikeout numbers are flashy and fun to look at, the walk total says a lot about this young man’s control. He keeps the ball over the plate but works the corners well.

On a side note, of his 11 walks, four of them came in his first start of 2013. He has only seven over the remaining six starts.

That’s crazy good.

Deep Pitch Counts

Miller has crossed 100 pitches four times so far, and thrown 113 pitches three times.

Even on the occasions that he didn’t go deep into a start, Miller is still getting deep pitch counts.

Never this season has Miller thrown less than 95 pitches in a start. Sure, strikeout pitchers will throw more, but a rookie who is averaging more than 100 pitches per start is the exception and not the rule.

This isn’t a trend I would expect him to keep up all season, because the Cardinals don’t want him to run out of gas too early. However, there has been no talk of an innings limit or a need to shorten his appearances.

So far in 2013, manager Mike Matheny has shown a strong willingness to let his pitchers go deep into games. Some of that has to do with bullpen concerns early in the season, but it must have more to do with a strong faith in his pitchers.

He depends on them (and catcher Yadier Molina) to let him know when it’s time to sit down. If they tell him they’re good to go, he’s taking them at their word.

It seems to be working—and Miller is responding to that trust.

Team Respect

Miller knows the role his team plays in his success, and he respects it. The reputation that arrived in St. Louis ahead of Shelby Miller didn’t lend one to expect a humble young man who knows his place, but that’s exactly what we’ve seen from him.

In postgame interviews, Miller doesn’t spend much time talking about “his” performance and “his” control. He does, however, love to talk about “his” catcher, Yadier Molina.

The right-handed rookie from Houston knows that there is much more to this game than just what he brings to the table. He always credits Molina, even before himself, with every win.

He’s quickly learned the true value of an elite catcher, and it’s helping him grow as a pitcher.

With that said, Miller deserves the credit for Friday night. A catcher can put down fingers all night, but if the pitcher misses his location, the team doesn’t win.

It’s as simple as that.

All that said, don’t expect him to keep up this pace all year. Even the great ones have their struggles from time to time, so to expect a rookie to keep this up isn’t realistic. Or is it?

Regardless, after Friday’s start, there’s simply no debating Shelby Miller is the clear front-runner in the NL Rookie of the Year race.

Kudos to Miller for one of the greatest starting pitching performances I’ve witnessed—ever. Something tells me we’ll be seeing a lot of fireworks in St. Louis during this young man’s career.

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The St. Louis Cardinals certainly have no shortage of young star pitching prospects in their farm system. Shelby Miller sat at the top of that list of prospects coming into this season, and he has done an outstanding job fitting into a starting rotation that is arguably the best in the entire MLB right now.

The Cardinals bullpen this year has certainly not been the best in baseball, though. In fact, the Cardinals have had one of the worst bullpens in baseball this year, and it has forced general manager John Mozeliak to make some moves with the club.

The Cardinals sent both Marc Rzepczynski and Mitchell Boggs to Memphis this week and they called up prospects Seth Maness and Carlos Martinez. Maness and Martinez both made their major league debuts on Friday night in Milwaukee, and both pitchers pitched one scoreless inning of work for the Cardinals.

It is hard to tell if Maness and Martinez will both have the same success that Shelby Miller is having in the majors right now, but based on their track records they may just have that same amount of success.

In his time in the minors, Maness has a record of 18-7, an ERA of 2.80, 172 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.04; Martinez has a record of 16-12 in the minors, an ERA of 2.74, 277 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.14.

While both relievers, Maness and Martinez are both very different pitchers. Martinez throws smoke just like many of the Cardinals’ pitching prospects who have arrived in St. Louis over the last few seasons.

Maness does not throw hard, but he has a very interesting and astounding stat that goes along with the rest of his resume. Maness has a career K/BB ratio of 9.56 in the minors. This is simply an outstanding number considering that the only pitcher last year to have a K/BB ratio above five was Cliff Lee, who posted a K/BB ratio of 7.39.

The Cardinals hope that Maness and Martinez will be the answer to the biggest problem they have faced so far throughout the first month of the season.

It is impossible for them to be much worse then what Boggs and Rzepczynski were for the Cardinals in the month of April. Over 10.2 innings this season, Boggs has given up 15 earned runs for a disastrous ERA of 12.66. Over seven innings this season, Rzepczynski has given up seven earned runs for an ERA of 7.88.

Normally, you would figure that if Boggs and Rzepczynski ironed out their problems in Memphis that they would be called back to the major league team as soon as possible. After all, both pitchers were essential to the 2011 and 2012 bullpens that helped the Cardinals win a World Series title two years ago and reach the NLCS last year. The hope is that once their stint in the minors is over, Boggs and Rzepczynski will be able to return to St. Louis to help the Cardinals make another deep playoff run.

What if Maness and Martinez each have great deals of success at the major league level though?

It would be hard to send both pitchers back down to the minors if they are as successful as a guy like Shelby Miller has been at the major league level. It would also be hard to leave Boggs and Rzepczynski down in the minors if they are able to fix their pitching problems.

Certainly this problem would be a great one for the Cardinals to have. It means that they would have depth at the pitching position in case more injuries occur, but it also would mean that the future is very bright for this bullpen.

Regardless of how things turn out, it will be very interesting over the next few weeks to see if there are any new faces in the St. Louis bullpen, and to see if Boggs and Rzepczynski are able to get their pitching together and get back to St. Louis.

For now, though, hopefully, Seth Maness and Carlos Martinez are the answer that the Cardinals have been waiting for to help out their bullpen problems.

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The St. Louis Cardinals are engaged in a tight battle already in the NL Central, and some sobering news on Friday will make their fight to stay alive in that race a little bit tougher.

Closer Jason Motte will undergo Tommy John surgery after attempting to rehab his right elbow for the past month.

Motte made nine appearances in spring training before experiencing pain in his elbow. An MRI at the time showed that he had strained his flexor tendon. With Motte starting the season on the disabled list, it was hoped that rest and rehab would be enough for him to avoid surgery.

The news probably wasn’t totally shocking, but it does add to the woes that have already piled up for the Cardinals bullpen.

Southpaw Marc Rzepczynski was demoted to the minors on Monday after struggling mightily in his first nine appearances. He posted a 7.88 ERA, allowing opposing batters to hit .361 against him.

One struggling reliever was just the start, however.

Earlier in the day on Friday, the Cardinals sent right-hander Mitchell Boggs to the minors as well, recalling Carlos Martinez to take his place on the roster. Boggs was named to replace Motte as the closer and completely spit the bit before being replaced by Edward Mujica. Boggs goes down to Triple-A after posting an ugly 12.66 ERA in 14 appearances.

The starting rotation for St. Louis has been simply outstanding, leading the majors with a 2.09 ERA heading into action on Friday. But the bullpen has been quite the opposite, posting a league-worst 5.90 ERA with six blown saves.

Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel summed up the state of the Cardinals pitching staff very succinctly.

It’s likely that Motte will need the minimum of 12 months to recover from his surgery, meaning he won’t be ready until early to mid-May of next year at the earliest. That’s the best-case scenario.

It may be time for the Cardinals to unleash Trevor Rosenthal.

Rosenthal is Ready to Assume the Mantel

Rosenthal was groomed as a starter by the Cardinals, and for good reason. He has a fastball that touches 100 MPH along with an effective curveball and changeup.

Everything changed for Rosenthal last year when he was called up by St. Louis in July. He made 19 regular-season appearances, posting a 2.78 ERA and 9.9K/9 rate. But during the postseason Rosenthal was electric, striking out 15 of the 30 batters he faced overall. The 100-MPH fastball was in evidence in both the NLDS and NLCS. He simply turned heads.

Rosenthal reported to spring training hoping to win a coveted rotation slot. After giving Shelby Miller a run for his money, Rosenthal settled back into a bullpen role once again to start the season. Thus far he’s posted a 3.18 ERA in 16 appearances with a 12.6 K/9 rate.

Cardinals fans clearly believe Rosenthal is the closer of the future. With Motte’s injury, that future could begin now.

He got into a spot of trouble in the eighth inning of Thursday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers, but limited the damage to just one run. One fan loved the poise he saw in the 22-year-old.

Another fan agrees.

However, here’s the thing—Mujica has picked up seven consecutive saves since taking over for Boggs. Why fix what isn’t broken?

He has been somewhat shaky in his last two outings, giving up runs in both to make things interesting for the Cards. And there’s also the fact that Mujica was absolutely magical in his role last year as a seventh-/eighth-inning reliever, posting a ridiculously low 1.03 ERA in 29 outings following his trade from the Miami Marlins.

While he’s done a stand-up job as the temporary closer, wouldn’t it make more sense for manager Mike Matheny to set his bullpen in a way that maximizes everyone’s potential right now?

Mujica was dominant in his role last year—there’s no reason to think he can’t continue to be effective in that role again, even as the primary setup man. Matheny can use Joe Kelly in long/middle relief and Seth Maness in middle-relief situations as well.

Randy Choate continues as the left-handed specialist and Martinez and Fernando Salas can work in front of Mujica and Rosenthal. Setting more defined roles and moving Rosenthal now as opposed to later in the season simply makes more sense than waiting for a more opportune time.

The Cardinals have already tried just about everything they can to straighten out a bullpen that has been positively putrid. It’s Rosenthal’s time now, and the Cardinals can’t afford to wait any longer to make that decision.

Doug Mead is a featured columnist with Bleacher Report. His work has been featured in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, SF Gate, CBS Sports, the Los Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle.

Feel free to talk baseball with Doug anytime on Twitter.

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The St. Louis Cardinals will not have reigning National League saves king Jason Motte as their closer at any point during the 2013 season. 

According to a report on Twitter from Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Motte will not pitch this season following the decision by team officials to proceed with Tommy John surgery to his right arm:

Motte, who led the NL in saves last year with 42, has done everything he could in rehab to avoid a trip to the operating table. He felt good in late April after throwing from 60 feet (h/t Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com), but his latest throwing session revealed that the problem would not fix itself. 

According to general manager John Mozeliak, Motte will have the surgery early next week (h/t Brian Stull of 101ESPN.com). The Cardinals are also not seeking bullpen help through a trade as of now:

The 30-year-old closer has 54 saves, a 17-13 record and a 2.87 ERA in parts of a five-season MLB career—all with the Cardinals. He was also a member of the team’s 2011 World Series championship team, getting the clinching out in Game 7 of the series against the Texas Rangers. 

He broke on the scene in 2008 as a rookie, holding a 0.82 ERA in 12 games. From there, Motte established himself as a front-end bullpen guy and took over the closer job late in the 2011 season, a move that Tony LaRussa has to feel like is one of his finest after the results of the 2011 postseason. 

While trading for bullpen help isn’t likely right now, the Cardinals could be in the market for such a deal in the very near future. 

Mitchell Boggs flamed out in the closer’s role to start the season and was sent down minors on Friday—hours before the team made the announcement that Motte would miss the season (via St. Louis Post-Dispatch). 

Edward Mujica has been much better as the closer since being moved into the role by manager Mike Matheny, completing seven straight saves dating back to his first appearance as the closer on April 18. 

While the news on Motte is troubling for Cardinals fans, it’s a move that many expected after an April MRI revealed he tore a ligament in his throwing elbow (via MLB.com). If everything goes according to plan, he could return by this time next season, and an early recovery schedule might place a return somewhere in the area of spring training in 2014. 

The Cardinals currently have a team ERA of 3.14 (heading into Friday night)—the second-best mark in baseball. They will miss Motte down the stretch, though, and almost certainly will have to do something to add depth to the ‘pen if a playoff push is in their future. 

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