“Look, if you’re going to game plan (against us), he’s the guy in the MVP conversation and clearly he’s going to get pitched tough,” Shildt said. “I see a combination of things. A lot of tough pitches. A couple of hard outs at people that aren’t getting results. Matt’s going to be just fine. Matt Carpenter is the least of my worries.”
Carpenter continues to lead the National League with 35 home runs, though he’s yet to hit his first of September. His league-leading .966 OPS has slipped back to .916 in the past 19 days, and he entered a late pinch-hit appearance Wednesday hitless in his past 16 at-bats with eight strikeouts.