Dakota Hudson and Not Jack Flaherty is the Cardinals Postseason X-Factor

There's a lot to be excited about for the St. Louis Cardinals as they sprint their way into October baseball. After all, it's the first time they've made the postseason since 2015. But for all the anticipation, there are also plenty of questions to be answered, chief among them being how the starting rotation will perform.

And while it might seem like the streaking Jack Flaherty will make or break them, it's actually his rotation mate Dakota Hudson who will be the real x-factor in the postseason.

At this point, the team knows what to expect out of Flaherty. He's been as steady as a metronome since the start of the second half, pitching to the tune of a ridiculous 0.97 ERA over his last 14 starts. It's not unreasonable to assume he'll be able to extend that dominance into the playoffs.

The same cannot be said for Hudson. He has shown flashes of brilliance at times this season only to follow them up with uninspiring performances. On Sept. 16, for example, he dominated the Nationals, allowing just two runs in seven quality innings of work. He then followed up that performance by allowing three runs in just three innings against the Cubs five days later.

Control in particular has been a major problem for him this year. He's issued a league-leading 86 walks, and while he's still managed to put up a 3.35 ERA this year, his 4.93 FIP implies that he's been incredibly lucky and that regression is lurking.

Hudson could be absolutely lights out for the Cardinals, but at the same time, he could be their undoing. As he goes, so to will the team's chances of making a run at the World Series.