On Thursday, the St. Louis Cardinals finally made their announcement on which starter would open the NL Wild Card Series against the Phillies. They’re going with veteran lefty Jose Quintana, whom they acquired from the Pirates at the trade deadline.
Quintana has been a man possessed since coming to St. Louis. In 62.2 IP, he has a 2.01 ERA and has allowed a single homer as a Cardinal. Overall, he has a 2.93 ERA and only 8 homers allowed on the season. He has accumulated 4.0 fWAR in 2022.
In six September/October starts, Quintana has been at his most dangerous. He’s allowed just 3 ER in 33.1 IP and walked only four batters.
There will be one major battle that Quintana will have to overcome: his stats pitching in St. Louis vs. his stats pitching in day games. In St. Louis, he has a 1.86 ERA in five games started with a 0.862 WHIP. In 11-day games, he has a 3.74 ERA with a 1.301 WHIP. It’s the irresistible force vs. the immovable object.
As for the matchup against the Phils, let’s break down some individual stats against Quintana.
Phillies Individual Hitters Against Quintana
The Phillies have someone with tons of at bats against Jose Quintana going back to their times in the AL Central. Nick Castellanos has faced Quintana in 40 at bats in his career. He’s hit .275 against him and has taken him out of the ballpark twice.
While Castellanos has seen him the most, two other Phillies have great numbers against the lefty. Jean Segura is 3-7 against Quintana with a homer and a double. Rhys Hoskins has also homered against him, hitting .300 and registering five walks.
JT Realmuto is 1-7 against him but that one hit is a home run. He’s walked twice against Quintana. Alec Bohm is 1-3.
The Phillies’ big lefty bats have, not surprisingly, struggled against the craft veteran. Kyle Schwarber is 1-6 and Bryce Harper is 0-6. Neither has a walk on their ledger.
Finally, the Phillies have announced that Matt Vierling would start in centerfield over the lefty Brandon Marsh.
Vierling has faced Quintana just twice but is 1-2 against him.
Photo Credit: AP Photo/David J. Phillip
