50 Adam Wainwright, SP

Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright tossed six innings against the Mets Thursday.

Wainwright ended up giving up four runs, but only three were earned. He gave up six hits, and struck out eight batters. Wainwright also gave up one walk, bringing his season total to just six. Wainwright has stuck with the loss, and is now 5-3 on the season. 

Cardinals' starters have gone deeper into games this year, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The rotation is a averaging 101.5 pitches per start. No other National League rotation has averaged over 100 pitches per start. The team's rotation has the second best FIP in baseball, with a 2.81 mark. The high pitch counts may be a result of the team's success in the rotation. It also shows the Cardinals are willing to let their starters go deeper in games if they are experiencing success. The team has already seen Adam Wainwright and Shelby Miller turn in complete games.

It's impossible to accurately predict complete games or shutouts for Fantasy purposes, but it's encouraging to know the Cardinals will let their starters throw a higher workload if things are going well.

While Shelby Miller and Adam Wainwright both fell just short of throwing no-hitters Friday and Saturday, respectively, the two did help the Cardinals make some history.

Miller and Wainwright combined to retire 40 straight Rockies hitters between the two of them, which tied the streak the Rangers set against the Tigers back in 1996, according to the Ellias Sports Bureau.

Miller got things started by retiring 27 batters after allowing a leadoff single Friday night and Wainwright continued the steak Saturday, retiring the first 13 batters he faced before issuing a one-out walk to Todd Helton in the fifth inning.

In addition to retiring 40 consecutive batters, St. Louis also held the Rockies hitless over a span of 50 batters between Eric Young's single Friday and Nolan Arenado's hit Saturday.

Starting pitcher Adam Wainwright became the second Cardinals' pitcher to flirt with a no-hitter in as many days Saturday. He did not allow a hit until the eighth inning against the Rockies.

After Shelby Miller retired the final 27 Rockies batters Friday, Wainwright sat down the first 13 he faced before a fifth-inning walk of Todd Helton. He finished a complete game with just two hits allowed, while striking out seven and walking just the one batter.

Wainwright earned a 3-0 win to push his record to 5-2. He is the first pitcher in the majors with two complete-game shutouts to his name this season. Wainwright ranks 10th in the National League with a 2.30 ERA, and ninth with a 0.99 WHIP. He has struck out 55 batters in 58 2/3 innings as well.

Wainwright is scheduled to take the mound next Thursday against the Mets at home.  

Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright was roughed up a bit during Saturday's contest against the Brewers. Wainwright, who made his seventh start, allowed a season-high five runs on 11 hits over just 5 1/3 innings of work in a 7-6 win.

The right-hander did not get off to a great start, surrendering a leadoff single to Norichika Aoki before Jean Segura roped the next pitch he threw over the center-field fence for a two-run homer -- the first long ball the the right-hander has surrendered.

Wainwright was able to settle down until he ran into more trouble in the sixth. He allowed a solo home run to Carlos Gomez and then a two-run single to Jonathan Lucroy, which chased him from the game.

However, the Cardinals were able to re-take the lead in the seventh, taking Wainwright off the hook for the loss. He finished with five strikeouts and did not issue a walk, while earning his first no-decision of the year.

Wainwright is scheduled to face the Rockies at home next Saturday.