Jim Bowden stirred up plenty of debate with his latest take on baseball’s postseason setup, and Cardinals fans have every reason to bristle at it.
The former MLB general manager and current Athletic columnist wants to see the Wild Card round shrink back to a single game. Bowden pointed to the current format’s lopsided results, noting on X that “In this wildcard format the team that wins game 1 has won their series 18 out of 19 times. Regardless of who wins Phillies @ Braves we have enough sample size for MLB/MLBPA to bargain to reduce WC back to one game series instead of 2 out of 3 while also bringing back game 163 as…”
That idea may have some appeal if you’re chasing pure drama, but it’s also exactly the kind of setup that leaves too much to chance. Baseball is a long season built on depth and resilience, not one night of survival. The current best-of-three format gives teams a little more room for the better club to show it.
And for Cardinals fans, the memory of the old one-game Wild Card is still fresh enough to sting.
St. Louis’ final one-and-done playoff game came in 2021 against the Dodgers, after the Cardinals ripped off 17 straight wins to surge into the postseason. Los Angeles arrived with a 106-56 record, the best mark ever for a Wild Card team and only one game behind the division-winning Giants.
Adam Wainwright, then 40, gave the Cardinals a chance. He worked 5.1 innings and allowed one run on four hits, turning in a solid outing on a huge stage.
But the game slipped away in a 3-1 loss, capped by Chris Taylor’s walk-off home run. Alex Reyes took the blame for the two-run blast, though St.
Louis also went 0-for-11 with runners in scoring position and couldn’t cash in on its chances.
Bowden’s argument for going back to one game also opens the door to the opposite case: if the first team to win is so often the one that advances, doesn’t that suggest the underdog has a shot after dropping Game 1? As the source notes, that comeback has happened only once.
Game 163, meanwhile, would be a different story. Unlike the manufactured one-game Wild Card, it grew naturally out of teams finishing with identical records and fighting for a division title or Wild Card spot. That kind of single-game tension feels earned rather than forced.
For now, though, the structure remains what it is, and it doesn’t look like owners are eager to give up games unless something like a lockout takes them off the schedule. Cardinals fans won’t get a do-over on that 2021 loss, but they also have little reason to miss the old format Bowden is pining for.
In Other News...
Cardinals Suddenly Look Built To Pounce As Cubs Window Gets Shaky
The National League Central may look tilted toward Chicago right now, but the longer view is starting to favor St. Louis. The Cubs still have the better major league roster at the moment, yet the gap is built on a group that is getting older and a depth chart that does not have much help coming from the farm. For the Cardinals, the picture is different: a stronger system, a younger core and more roster control give them a cleaner path to staying competitive without having to buy every answer on the open market.
Chicago is going to need a meaningful spending spree just to keep up with the turnover ahead, and that kind of winter can get expensive fast when key pieces reach free agency. St. Louis, meanwhile, looks more like a club that can wait for the right moment to pounce, with the kind of starting pitching production projected for 2026 that could make the rest of the division nervous. The window is not wide open yet, but it is getting easier to see why the Cardinals believe they are moving into position to challenge for the division again soon. [Read more 🡒]
Nolan Arenado Gave Arizona Hope At Third Base Again For Now
For the Cardinals, Nolan Arenados move to Arizona in 2026 became one of those trades that always invites a second look once the season settles in. He still showed why the Diamondbacks were willing to take the chance, putting together a strong start and then finding his best swing again in September, even if the middle months were rough enough to keep the overall picture from feeling clean.
Arenado finished with a .255 average, 30 home runs and a 120 wRC+, a line that still carried real value at the plate. But the deeper indicators were less encouraging, with drops in exit velocity and hard-hit rate hinting that the power production may not be as sturdy as the final totals suggest, which leaves Arizona with hope at third base for now and a decision to sort through later. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Suddenly Have A Real Third Base Question To Watch
The Cardinals farm system did not end the season with championship banners in Memphis or Springfield, but there was still plenty for the organization to keep an eye on. Jesus Baez and Tai Peete both gave the club reasons to feel better about what comes next, with Peete turning in a strong run in Double-A and Baez continuing to look like a real bat to track as he moves through the system.
For St. Louis, the timing matters because third base remains one of the clearer long-term questions on the roster. Baez, who piled up 39 home runs and stayed hot in the playoffs with a 1.156 OPS, is starting to look like a legitimate candidate to eventually answer it. The Cardinals are not there yet, but performances like this are the kind that can change how an internal battle looks a year from now. [Read more 🡒]