The misery of St. Louis Cardinals fans hit a whole new level on Monday as the team lost 7-4 to the Colorado Rockies to sink to a 3-7 record for the season so far.
At the game's end, the Cardinals — picked by many to win the National League Central — were not only last in the division, but tied with the Washington Nationals for the worst record in the entire league.
Pending the outcome of the Nationals' Monday night game against the Los Angeles Angels, the Cardinals could hold the worst record in the NL.
The St. Louis Cardinals were expected by many to claim the division title this season, and possibly make a postseason push. Those expectations feel far off after St. Louis' first 10 games.
St. Louis is traditionally one of the more successful teams in the MLB. The team had a .521 winning percentage in 142 seasons. The Cardinals made 32 playoff appearances in that time, winning 23 National League pennants and 11 World Series titles.
Sitting 3-7 early on in the 2023 season is unfamiliar territory for the Cardinals Nation. Seeing the team at the foot of the entire league and among the worst teams in all of baseball is almost unheard of.
Furthermore, fans of the team do not seem to be handling it well:
St. Louis Cardinals fans like to bill themselves as "the best fans in baseball." However, the start to the 2023 season has some fans jumping ship already for the sake of their own sanity.
The Cardinals' starting pitching, normally a strength of the team, has been abysmal this season. Steven Matz, who started against Colorado on Monday, gave up six earned runs on nine hits in 5-2/3 innings and saw his ERA balloon to 8.18 on the year.
There are managerial hot seats, and then there are St. Louis Cardinals managerial hot seats that scorch with a much higher ferocity.
Oliver Marmol, who managed the team to the 2022 NL Central title only to lose a Wild Card playoff matchup to the eventual National League champions Philadelphia Phillies, is currently feeling the heat as much as any manager in baseball.
The St. Louis Cardinals have only finished last in their division once — 1990 — since divisional play began in 1969. Cardinal Nation is beginning to worry that it might happen again in 2023.
St. Louis Cardinals rookie Jordan Walker stays on a tear
Cardinals rookie outfielder Jordan Walker, 20, hit a single in Monday's loss and has now logged at least one hit in every game this season. In doing so, he moved past Boston Red Sox legend Ted Williams and into second place among hitting streaks to start a big-league career for players under 21 years old.
Eddie Murphy, 20, of the 1912 Philadelphia Athletics owns the all-time record by hitting in his first 12 big-league games.