Oliver Marmol Gets Brutally Honest About Dakota Hudson's Future in Cardinals' Rotation

After a solid start to the 2022 MLB season, St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Dakota Hudson has looked the complete opposite in recent weeks. That became even more obvious when the 27-year-old surrendered nine hits and six earned runs over just four innings against the Atlanta Braves on Monday night.

It appears as if Hudson's status as a starter is no longer safe after last night's performance. When asked about the righty's struggles after the game, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol was brutally honest about Hudson's future in the rotation.

St. Louis Cardinals News

Marmol told reporters that the MLB "is the big leagues, and it’s about performance; this isn’t a tryout." Even though he didn't outright say it, you only need to read between the lines to see that the skipper's patience regarding Hudson is wearing thin with each passing disastrous start.

The truth is that Hudson hasn't been himself since the middle of June. In five starts since June 12, the former Mississippi State product has gone 2-3 with a 7.82 ERA. His control has been all over the place, issuing 14 walks and 22 earned runs over just 25.1 innings pitched.

What's even more concerning is Hudson's growing pitch count. Despite having not made it beyond the fifth inning in each of his last four starts, the Dunlap, TN native has averaged just over 85 pitches per appearance in that span. A reliable starter doesn't need to be bailed out by the bullpen every game.

The silver lining here is that Hudson is confident that he can get out of this funk. He told reporters that he doesn't "think there’s anything drastic" that needs to be changed. Only time will tell if he can figure out the necessary steps to help him turn things around before it's too late.

Cardinals World Series Odds

Hudson bouncing back sooner than later is one key for any championship aspirations that St. Louis has this year. As it stands, FanDuel Sportsbook is giving the Cardinals +2800 odds (No. 9) to win the 2022 World Series.

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.