Cardinals On Wrong Side Of 122-Year Obscure History

The St. Louis Cardinals were nowhere close to being the worst team in Major League Baseball in 2025.

Even though the Cardinals sold at the trade deadline by shipping Ryan Helsley, Steven Matz, and Phil Maton out of town, they still finished right around .500 with a 78-84 record. In the National League, the Atlanta Braves, Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Colorado Rockies finished with worse records. In the American League, the Tampa Bay Rays, Baltimore Orioles, Minnesota Twins, Chicago White Sox, Athletics, and Los Angeles Angels had worse records than St. Louis.

If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.

While this is the case, the club was on the wrong side of some obscure history. ESPN's David Schoenfield pointed out one stat to make or break each NL club. For the Cardinals, the number was 2.7: Brendan Donovan's WAR in 2025. In the process, Schoenfield noted that the 2025 season was the Cardinals' first without a 3-WAR player since 1903.

The Cardinals had a tough season

Sep 23, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan (33) celebrates his double against the San Francisco Giants during the fifth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

"The number: 2.7," Schoenfield wrote. "The number we really wanted to use here was 991,084. That's the decline in home attendance for the Cardinals since 2023. Losing nearly a million fans over a two-year span is absolutely devastating to the bottom line of the organization, but that attendance figure is related to the number above: 2.7 was Brendan Donovan's bWAR in 2025 ... which led the team. The Cardinals were the only team in the majors without a 3-win player. The last time they didn't have at least one player earn 3 WAR? 1903. This is a team without stars -- and thus the dramatic decline in fan interest.

"The Cardinals are 232-254 (.477) over the past three postseason-less seasons. It was the worst three-year span for the Cardinals since an identical 232-254 record from 1988 to 1990. The Cardinals and new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom have been clear about their rebuilding goals: At the winter meetings, Bloom said he's listening to offers on anyone on the roster, including Donovan, who has been 'pretty popular' in trade asks. This might mean another step back in 2026."

Now, that is quite odd and the Cardinals already have traded two of their most talented players away in Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras, with more to come.

More MLB: Ex-Cardinals Slugger Signs With D-Backs After Popping 144 MiLB Homers