2011 MLB Playoff Schedule: Cardinals' Pitching Will Carry Them to NLCS Win

Despite losing Game 1 of the National League Championship Series, the St. Louis Cardinals should not be discouraged heading into Monday night’s Game 2. The biggest reason for that is starting pitching.

Even in the first game, Jaime Garcia was cruising along for four innings before losing his control and composure in the fifth inning. It is not like Zack Greinke was lights out either.

The Cardinals will start Edwin Jackson, Chris Carpenter and Kyle Lohse in the next three games of the series. The Brewers counter with Shaun Marcum, Yovani Gallardo and Randy Wolf.

You can make a case that the Cardinals have an advantage in all three of those games. Jackson goes through stretches where he loses his command, but he has electric stuff and the ability to shutdown a lineup when he is right.

Don’t judge Jackson based on his last start against the Phillies, though, because their lineup is terrible. The Brewers don’t have a great lineup, but it is deeper than the Phillies.

Chris Carpenter was lights out against the Phillies once he got four days of rest, and he is the best pitcher left in the National League playoffs.

Kyle Lohse does not have great stuff, but he is a ground-ball pitcher who has benefited from the tutelage of pitching coach extraordinaire Dave Duncan.

The Brewers possess a deeper lineup than the Cardinals, and they will have to perform at a high-level all series long if they want to have a chance in this series.

Marcum is a finesse pitcher who needs good command and his changeup in order to shut down a lineup. He did not have that against Arizona, so he has to prove that was just a one-time thing.

These two teams have played each other 19 times already this season, regular season and playoffs, so there are not going to be any surprises.

The Brewers victory in Game 1 should have been expected, because they had one of their best pitchers going against the Cardinals third- or fourth-best starter.

The key will be Game 2, because the Cardinals need Jackson to give them innings and shutdown the Brewers’ offense. If they can steal a victory in Milwaukee, where the Brewers never lose, they will be riding high going back to St. Louis for three games.