This Insane Stat Should Give Cardinals Fans Hope As Club Looks To Get Back On Track

St. Louis should shoot up the NL Central standings shortly

Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals certainly have struggled this season, but there still is plenty of reason for hope. 

St. Louis has been a disappointment so far this season and is in fourth place in the National League Central with a 25-32 record, but things have started to take a turn. The Cardinals started to get right in May, but there's still plenty of work for the club to do and they likely will be extremely busy around the trade deadline in an attempt to bolster the starting rotation.

Although the season hasn't gone as expected so far for the Cardinals, one crazy stat that should give St. Louis fans hope is the fact that the club actually has the highest run differential in the National League Central. The Cardinals are plus-seven in runs scored so far this season, followed by the second-place Pittsburgh Pirates at plus-six. The first-place Milwaukee Brewers actually have the worst run differential in the division with minus-24. 

If these numbers continue to work out the way they have so far this season, the standings likely will look very different by the time the 2023 campaign comes to a close. St. Louis is just four and a half games behind the Brewers for first place although it is seven games below .500 so far this season. 

The Cardinals' record should drastically improve in the not-so-distant future as the club's starting rotation has started to improve. A shakeup may be coming with No. 4 prospect Matthew Liberatore potentially joining the rotation, which likely would help. Plus, the Cardinals are expected to be very active in the trade market. 

If the Cardinals can stay afloat and within a few games of the Brewers, it wouldn't be too surprising at all to see the club get hot and rise up the standings quickly. 

More MLB: Rotation Shakeup Reportedly May Be On Way For Cardinals Involving Top Prospect