St. Louis Cardinals: 5 Keys to Beating Cincinnati Reds

The St. Louis Cardinals and the Cincinnati Reds are two of the three best teams in the National League Central, along with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Cardinals, fresh off a series win in Milwaukee, will be looking to continue their early-season success against the Reds, a team that recently won two of three games against the Miami Marlins.

Another series win to start the season for the Redbirds would be a big plus.

So, let’s take a look at five things St. Louis will have to do if they want to beat Cincinnati this week.

5. Keep Running

Rafael Furcal has swiped two bases through four games and Carlos Beltran has one steal.

If these guys can keep stealing bases successfully at the top of the order, the Cardinals will be tough to beat.

But, running against Ryan Hanigan is not easy. He caught about a third of would-be base stealers in 2011.

Still, the Cardinals need to be smart with their baserunning and try to get as many runners into scoring position as possible.

4. Focus on the Game

The Cardinals and Reds haven’t been very friendly the past couple years.

In addition to the infamous brawl, these two teams have exchanged barbs in nearly every series.

The Cardinals will be best served by keeping their emotions in check and just playing baseball. There's no need to start any more fights.

3. Get a Good Start from Jake Westbrook

Westbrook was the weak link in the Cardinals' rotation in 2011.

He needs to improve in 2012 or he’ll be in danger of losing his starting spot.

If he can beat Homer Bailey on Monday, it’ll be a good confidence-booster to start the season.

Bailey struggled this spring, posting a 7.98 ERA, so Westbrook should be able to outduel the Reds’ youngster.

2. Take Advantage of Cincinnati's Weak Bullpen

The Reds' bullpen suffered a major blow when newly acquired closer Ryan Madson was lost for the season with an injury.

Now, the Reds are going to have to rely way too heavily on Aroldis Chapman and Sean Marshall.

Beyond those two, there are not a lot of talented relief pitchers on the Cincinnati roster.

If Chapman or Marshall is unavailable for a game due to too much work, the Reds will be in trouble.

1. Stop Joey Votto and Jay Bruce

Bruce has already hit three home runs this season and Votto is one of the best players in baseball.

The Cardinals are going to need to cool down Bruce after his hot start and prevent Votto from getting in a groove if they are going to make things manageable for their offense.

A couple bad pitches to these two sluggers could mean four or five runs for the Reds.

The St. Louis pitching staff needs to make sure it doesn't let these two guys win the game for Cincinnati.