Dakota Hudson is not an answer to the rotation's problems

During his recent stretch, he's enjoyed good luck that isn't likely to last, and he doesn't have the velocity and strikeouts the rotation so badly needs moving forward

Against the Pirates on Friday, Dakota Hudson authored one of the weirdest pitching lines I’ve seen in a while: 

That’s just the second time this season and the sixth time in the last five years that a starting pitcher has gone at least seven innings without striking out a batter. As well, of Hudson’s 90 pitches on the night, just two – two! – induced a swing and miss. There’s no disputing that this was a highly effective start by Hudson in terms of run prevention, but the complete and utter lack of dominance rubs the shine off it. 

This, inevitably, brings us back to the Cardinals’ search for strikeouts and whiffs moving forward. Adding velocity and strikeouts to the rotation for 2024 and beyond is going to be a winter priority, and the expectation is that the front office will add multiple arms that address this deficit. One concern, though, is that the decision-makers will over-respond to Hudson’s respectable bottom-line numbers (meaning, mostly, his 3.93 ERA) since being returned to the rotation in early August. Probe just beneath the surface, though, and you’ll find ample reason to believe Hudson hasn’t made genuine progress. Consider: