The Cardinals are still hanging around in the National League race, and that makes this week’s trip to San Francisco feel a lot bigger than the records suggest. St.
Louis opens a three-game set against the Giants on Monday night, and with the Cardinals sitting at 72-72 and four games out of a playoff spot, there isn’t much room left for wasted opportunities. The Giants, meanwhile, are 59-85.
That’s the backdrop for a series the Cardinals really should handle if they want to keep any realistic hope alive over the final 18 games of the 2026 Major League Baseball regular season.
Michael McGreevy gets the ball to start things off Monday night, and St. Louis needs a cleaner version of him than the one it has seen lately.
McGreevy was the club’s most reliable starter for most of the season, but he hasn’t looked quite right since the end of July. Over his last seven starts, he has posted a 7.09 ERA.
For a team trying to stay in the race, that’s the kind of slump it can’t afford to carry much longer.
The middle game belongs to Mathews, who has made five starts in the majors and already given the Cardinals plenty to like. Four of those outings have been strong, including his most recent one on Sep. 3 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, when he worked five innings and gave up one run.
In his five starts, he has allowed more than two runs only once. Since coming up from Triple-A, he has looked like more than just a fill-in - he’s become a real part of what St.
Louis is trying to do now.
Wednesday’s starter has not been set yet. Andre Pallante last pitched on Sep. 4, which makes him the most likely choice for the finale if the Cardinals decide not to push him back for extra rest. If Pallante doesn’t get the nod, another bullpen game would not come as a surprise.
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Diego Velasquez has also answered an important test after moving up to Triple-A Sacramento. He has handled the jump well, batting .300 with a .400 on-base percentage in 107 plate appearances, and his steady production only strengthens his case as one of the more intriguing names in the organization. For a team always looking to line up the next wave, both players are surging at the right moment. [Read more 🡒]
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Vitello also spoke candidly about the jump from college coaching to managing in the pros, a transition that has asked him to adjust in real time while the Giants have tried to steady themselves. Even with the frustration of the seasons early stretch still hanging over things, he sounded determined to treat the experience as part of the learning curve, hoping it leaves him better prepared for whatever comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Giants May Be Reliving An Expensive Matt Chapman Problem
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The uncomfortable part is how familiar this all looks in San Francisco. The Giants have been down this road before with Evan Longoria, whose own later years in orange and black were shaped by injuries and diminishing production as the wear of age caught up with him. Chapman is not Longoria, and the comparison is not perfect, but the pattern is hard to miss for a club that once hoped it was buying reliability. Now the question hanging over the Giants is whether this is a temporary setback or the start of another expensive decline they have to manage. [Read more 🡒]