Hudson got six outs from six Braves and, with the help of a double play, finished his first appearance of spring training on 18 pitches. Atlanta hitters made contact on three pitches in his second inning and each of them produced a ground ball – for a single, for a double play, and for an out. It was the kind of effective, efficient and ruthlessly grounded inning that has pitching coach Mike Maddux and the Cardinals intrigued about how one of last year’s bullpen sensations can be this year’s rotation revelation. But he’s not alone.
On Wednesday, the Cardinals had three of the five pitchers auditioning for a starting job pitch in some form of competition.