Matt Svanson’s Recent Slide Becoming a Problem for Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals hurler hasn't had the start to the 2026 season that he hoped for.

Apr 4, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Matt Svanson (49) pitches in the fifth inning against the Detroit Tigersat Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

There have been a lot of positives about the 2026 St. Louis Cardinals so far this season. There are a lot of reasons for optimism. But there have been some negatives as well.

Riley O'Brien, JoJo Romero, Gordon Graceffo and George Soriano have been solid out of the bullpen. Of this group, none of the four have an ERA above 2.25. While this is the case, the Cardinals actually have the 25th-ranked bullpen ERA in the league at 5.30 because the rest of the group has been that bad.

Ryne Stanek has an 8.59 ERA in eight appearances. Justin Bruihl has an 8.00 ERA in 10 outings. The most concerning has been Matt Svanson, though, who has a 13.97 ERA in eight outings to go along with a 9-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Svanson has four different outings this season in which he has allowed three earned runs or more. His worst outing of the season came on April 11 against the Boston Red Sox in which he allowed five earned runs across one inning of work.

The Cardinals Hurler Is Struggling

Apr 8, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Matt Svanson (49) throws a pitch against the Washington Nationals during the seventh inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

His performance so far this season certainly has been off from the 2025 campaign. In 2025, Svanson was one of the team's biggest bright spots. He had a 1.94 ERA across 60 1/3 innings pitched in 39 appearances.

For Svanson, his advanced metrics aren't much better this season. He's in the fifth percentile in expected ERA against, first percentile in expected batting average against, ninth percentile in average exit velocity against, 17th percentile in chase rate, 10th percentile in whiff rate, fourth percentile in hard-hit rate and 21st percentile in strikeout rate.

So, the stats you typically hear about, like ERA, aren't great for Svanson right now. But it's not as if he has just been unlucky. The advanced metrics paint a picture of a hurler who's simply struggling to get the ball by hitters right now. If this trend continues, it may be worth a triple down to Triple-A to get back on track.

Again, the Cardinals have been good overall this season. St. Louis has four relievers with a 2.25 ERA or better. That's phenomenal. But the hurlers who are struggling are really struggling. It's getting to the point where it's too much to ignore. Over the next few weeks, keep a close eye on Svanson. St. Louis needs him to turn things around if it wants to improve the bullpen.