Dickey's Dominance

R.A. Dickey has been nothing short of dominant this season. He leads the MLB in wins with 11 and has a 2.00 ERA. With his win last night Dickey has pitched back to back 1 hitters. Additionally he has not allowed an earned run since his start on May 22 against the Pirates. That was 6 games ago.

The knuckle ball is Dickey's primary pitch and he has perfected it. The undetermined movement makes the batter buckle his knees, then it drops in for a strike. It is the hardest pitch to perfect, but Dickey has done so. 13 out of 14 of his starts have been quality starts. That means at least 6 innings pitched with 3 or fewer runs allowed.

I don't know what else to say. You can't predict a knuckle ball and that shows with 103 strikeouts and only 67 hits in 99 innings pitched. Dickey is 37 years old, so go get them R.A.

If you were wondering, R.A. stands for Robert Alan.  

The Price is Wainwright

After spending the entire 2011 season on the disabled list Adam Wainwright seems to be back in his all star form. In 2009 and 2010 Wainwright sported back to back seasons with a sub 3 ERA to show he is an elite starter in the MLB. In the spring training of 2011 Wainwright had to have Tommy John surgery which seems to be a regular injury among pitchers.

Last night Wainwright pitched against the San Diego Padres which ended up being his best start of the season. A complete game shutout victory with 9 strikeouts. Wainwright only allowed 1 walk and 4 hits, he was absolutely dominant. His velocity is back, but it was more about the movement on Tuesday night. His slider had enormous break and averaged about 90 MPH.

Wainwrights success will be important with the loss of Berkman for 6-8 weeks due to a torn meniscus. Additionally Chris Carpenter's injuries. Wainwright has to be the Wainwright of old and be the ace of the Cardinals.