Cardinals Case For and Against Staying in Contention in 2026

May 2, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Michael McGreevy (36) delivers a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images | Joe Puetz-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals have found ways to be successful this season despite making several offseason trades and purging the roster of any veterans on expensive contracts. They enter play on Tuesday with a 21-14 record and sit in second place in the National League Central, which has become Major League Baseball's most competitive division.

However, it remains to be seen if the Cardinals can sustain their early success. There are a lot of reasons to be excited for fans, but they are still in the middle of a rebuild. Here are the cases for and against them being able to sustain their hot start.

The case for the Cardinals

May 4, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt (26) hits a one run single against the Milwaukee Brewers during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

If the Cardinals are going to stay in postseason contention this year, it will be because of their young core. They are getting a lot of contributions from players like JJ Wetherholt, Ivan Herrera, Masyn Winn, Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson, and they have scored 172 runs thus far, which is the seventh-most in the National League.

It's not anything terribly remarkable, but it's getting the job done for St. Louis. If the offense can continue to come through in the clutch and get the same contributions out of the young core, then the Cardinals will likely be just fine the rest of the way and should be able to stay in the mix in the NL Central.

The case against the Cardinals

Apr 14, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ryne Stanek (55) pitches against the Cleveland Guardians during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

If there's one issue that is holding the Cardinals back, it's their pitching, or lack thereof. They have a 4.50 team ERA, which is 10th in the National League, and their bullpen has posted a 4.92 ERA, which is the worst in the National League.

They also aren't getting a lot of swings and misses. It is largely a pitch-to-contact staff, and in this day and age, that just isn't going to be sustainable for too much longer. That could ultimately be what sends them to the bottom of the NL Central by the end of the season.

There are certainly promising signs with the pitching staff, but it may only be a matter of time before some of the issues plaguing them start to catch up to them. This team, while impressive so far, is not built to win the World Series or even have a deep run in the postseason, so fans shouldn't be surprised if some of these issues start to catch up with the Cardinals.