St Louis Cardinals

One St. Louis Cardinal is rapidly making his way toward a rather exclusive club this season. Carlos Beltran is within hitting distance, no pun intended, of the 300-300-2000 club.

This status is reserved for players who have hit 300 home runs, stolen 300 bases and amassed 2,000 hits over their career. Lots of talk has floated about Beltran hitting 300-300, but the 2,000 hasn’t gotten much attention.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright will take the mound tonight in anticipation of his sixth win of 2012.

Wainwright, who is still getting back to form following Tommy John surgery in 2011, has seen more success in his last four outings than all season.

His sinker sinks again. His curve moves again. That wasn't the case earlier in the season.

The St. Louis Cardinals won their third consecutive pennant in 1944.  They faced the St. Louis Browns in the World Series. Since the teams shared Sportsman’s Park, all the games would be played in the same park.

The Cardinals had beaten the New York Yankees in 1942. The Yankees returned the compliment in 1943.

Position: 3B

Height/Weight: 6’1”/210 lbs

Bats/Throws: R/R

DOB: 3/9/1994

High School: Valencia HS (Calif.)

College Commitment: Pepperdine

Much like Lance McCullers, Williams comes from a family with big-league experience, as his father, Eddie, spent 10 seasons in the major leagues.

Adam Wainwright has gotten off to a pretty rough start this season, posting an ERA of 5.77 prior to Tuesday's action.

After Tuesday night's contest against the Padres though, it's safe to say that his ERA will see a nice drop.

Wainwright pitched a shutout against the Padres, throwing just 111 pitches over nine innings while allowing just five baserunners—four hits and one walk. He also struck out nine.

The St. Louis Cardinals have one of the most talented rosters in all of Major League Baseball.

Stars like Matt Holliday, Lance Berkman and Carlos Beltran fill the batting order and pitchers like Adam Wainwright and Chris Carpenter are the anchors of the rotation.

But, that doesn’t mean this team is perfect. Like all teams, there are some holes on the St. Louis roster.

Shelby Miller might need another year or two in the minors before he's ready for a big league rotation. 

The Cardinals' 2011 Minor League Pitcher of the Year has struggled this season in Triple-A in Memphis. The former first-round pick sports a 3-2 record with a 4.45 ERA, giving up half an earned run per inning played. 

In his short 2012 season, Miller has given up four runs in five innings or less three times. 

After the loss of star slugger Albert Pujols to free agency over the winter, the Cardinals were seen as a team surely on the mend. 

The St. Louis Cardinals have played 21 of their 22 games this season against NL Central opponents en route to a division-leading 14-8 record.

That trend won’t change this week, with the Cardinals taking on the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Pirates have struggled their way to a 10-12 record this season, good for fourth in the NL Central.

The last calendar year has been an eventful one for the St. Louis Cardinals.

This time last year, the Cardinals were being written off by many thanks to Adam Wainwright's elbow woes, which ultimately led to Tommy John surgery. The team ended up flying under the radar for much of the 2011 season, only to get hot in September, finally clinching a playoff berth on the final day of the regular season.

Then they won the World Series.