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Cardinals' Masterson to pitch exclusively out of the stretch Saturday

Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals have guaranteed struggling right-hander Justin Masterson at least one more start this season - and he's willing to try anything to ensure it's not his last.

Masterson believes his troubles on the mound this season may be related to situational mechanics, so he's ditching the full windup from his approach Saturday against the Chicago Cubs.

"For the most part, I was pitching out of the windup, and things would get better out of the stretch at times," Masterson told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after a bullpen session Wednesday. "So we simplified it. I went only out of the stretch [in the bullpen]. Less moving parts."

The 29-year-old has continued to struggle since the Cardinals acquired him and his 5.51 ERA from the Cleveland Indians at the trade deadline in July. Masterson has allowed 19 earned runs in 23 innings over five starts with St. Louis.

His only quality start came Aug. 13 at Miami, when the right-hander tossed seven scoreless innings of three-hit ball without allowing a walk. Masterson said it was in that start he realized how inconsistent he had become trying to maintain so many moving parts in his delivery.

Via the Post-Dispatch:

That night, he described how he had several “checkpoints” — or points of reference — in his delivery that he kept returning to consistently. One of them was remaining steady over his back leg and not breaking forward or rushing toward the plate.

How Masterson fares from the stretch remains to be seen, as the numbers don't offer his new approach much support. Opponents are hitting for a higher average, getting on base more often and slugging at a better clip when he throws from the stretch compared to the full windup. 

Masterson is scheduled to start the afternoon portion of Saturday's doubleheader in St. Louis.

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