World Series 2011: Matt Holliday's Absence Won't Affect St. Louis Cardinals

It has been reported by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that Cardinals' left fielder Matt Holliday will not be available for Game 7 tonight, after spraining his wrist in last night’s epic 10-9 win over the Texas Rangers. Holliday injured himself while diving back to third base, unable to escape being picked off by Texas catcher Mike Napoli.

Holliday will be replaced on the Cardinals' roster by outfielder Adron Chambers, who was on the playoff roster during both the National League Divisional and Championship Series. The 25-year-old rookie played in only 18 games this season, and has appeared in 10 games during these playoffs, mostly as a defensive replacement or pinch runner. He is 1-for-5 with two runs batted in and two runs scored.

How will Holliday’s injury impact the Cardinals in the most important of all games, the finale of the World Series?

The answer is not at all.

Though Holliday is certainly one of the best hitters in the National League—when 100 percent healthy—he has been neither during these playoffs. He missed the majority of the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies, reduced mostly to a pinch-hitter role. Though he did make an impact in the NLCS versus the Milwaukee Brewers (.435 batting average), Holliday has seemed to be on vacation during the World Series. Including last night’s game, Holliday is batting an alarming .158 with no RBI against the Rangers. Even worse, the right-handed hitting Holliday was just 2-for-11 against left-handed Texas pitchers. Not the kind of production the Cards expected from their cleanup hitter.

It’s safe to say that the loss of Holliday for Game 7 won’t be much of an issue. With Allen Craig shifting to left field in his stead, and the way Lance Berkman is hitting (.435 batting average, 1.128 OPS), St. Louis won’t really miss a beat. If anything, the Cards’ outfield defense improves a bit without a banged-up Holliday, who also had an error in Game 6. Having a healthy outfield will be imperative for a series finale, and the Cardinals will have solid defense from Craig, Berkman and either Skip Schumaker or Jon jay.

What’s unfortunate is that Holliday will not be competing on baseball’s grandest stage, with the biggest stakes on the line. However, considering that Holliday seems to have taken a leave of absence at the plate, it may be beneficial for the Cardinals in their quest to win another title.

Without Holliday, Berkman will surely protect Pujols better hitting in the cleanup spot. And Game 6 hero David Freese will likely move up to the five-hole to further protect the switch-hitting Berkman. If all goes accordingly, the Cards will be fine without Holliday in the lineup.