The Cardinals left themselves with a real opening after taking two of three from the Dodgers, and the timing could hardly be better. St. Louis heads into a weekend series with the Rockies while the teams sitting ahead of them in the National League Wild Card race are all staring at tougher matchups.
That’s the kind of setup that can actually move the board. The Cardinals are four games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks for the third NL Wild Card spot, with the Padres and Marlins sitting in front of them as well.
A sweep of Colorado would be a big step on its own, but if Arizona, San Diego and Miami also stumble this weekend, St. Louis could be sitting just two games out with 18 games left.
The path is there, but it’s narrow. FanGraphs has the Cardinals at only 2.6% to make the playoffs, which tells you how much has to break their way from here on out. They need wins, and they need help.
The matchups around them do give St. Louis a chance to gain ground.
The Diamondbacks are headed to Houston to face the Astros. The Padres are home against the Yankees.
Miami is at home against the Cubs. Compared with that slate, the Rockies look like the softest landing spot in the bunch.
Still, Coors Field can make things messy in a hurry. The Cardinals’ offense has been better away from Busch Stadium, so runs should be there for the taking.
But their pitching has also been shakier on the road, which opens the door for Colorado to put up some crooked numbers of its own. One boost for St.
Louis: Andre Pallante is back for this series.
The NL playoff race still has the Dodgers and Braves battling near the top, with Milwaukee holding the No. 1 seed. The current picture has Milwaukee at 87-54, Atlanta and Los Angeles both at 83-57, Philadelphia at 79-61, Chicago at 79-62, and Arizona in the third Wild Card spot at 74-67.
If the Cardinals do somehow keep climbing, the payoff would be a matchup with either the Braves or the Dodgers - two clubs they’ve had success against this season. But first comes the far more immediate task: taking care of business against Colorado and hoping the rest of the Wild Card field cooperates.
In Other News...
Cardinals Trade Regret Keeps Growing At Their Biggest Weak Spot
The Cardinals made that three-team summer deal with an eye on helping a playoff push, landing Erick Fedde and Tommy Pham while parting with Tommy Edman and sending young third baseman Miguel Vargas to Chicago. At the time, it looked like the kind of aggressive but measured move a contender makes, one that shored up the roster without emptying the farm system.
Now, though, the trade sits in a harsher light for St. Louis. Vargas has turned into one of the best hitters in baseball in 2026, and the Cardinals have continued to search for answers at third base, a spot that has only underscored how much upside left with him. Even as the club later pivoted toward a rebuild, the regret attached to that deal has only grown. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Deadline Trade Suddenly Looks Better Than Fans Expected
The Cardinals deadline move to send Dustin May and JoJo Romero to Milwaukee drew plenty of second-guessing at the time, especially with St. Louis still trying to stabilize a rotation that has leaned on patchwork solutions. But as the weeks have passed, the return has started to look more favorable for the Cardinals long-term picture, with the club landing prospects Alexander Frias and Josiah Ragsdale in the deal.
Mays early run with the Brewers has only sharpened that impression. He has struggled since the trade, and the Cardinals can at least point to a transaction that added to the farm system while also opening up opportunities elsewhere on the pitching side. Even if the major-league rotation remains a concern in the short term, this is the kind of deadline move that could age well for St. Louis. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Suddenly Face A Riley O'Brien Decision They Can't Ignore
Riley OBrien has been one of the Cardinals biggest reasons for staying in games late all season, rising to the top of the National League in saves and earning an All-Star nod along the way. For most of the year, he looked like the kind of late-inning answer every contender wants, backing it up with a 2.94 ERA through 53 appearances and giving St. Louis a steady closer it could trust when the margin got tight.
The recent stretch has made that comfort feel a lot less certain. OBrien has been hit hard in his last five outings, allowing multiple runs and sending his ERA spiking over that span, which naturally raises the question of whether the Cardinals need to consider a change at the back end of the bullpen. Even so, his body of work still gives St. Louis reason to be patient, and the next few chances could go a long way toward showing whether this is a temporary stumble or something more troubling. [Read more 🡒]