Cardinals Predicted To Stun Baseball World Despite Low Expectations

The Cardinals certainly could end up surprising some people...

Jul 12, 2020; St. Louis, Missouri, United States; A view of empty seats as the St. Louis Cardinals play a simulated game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

From the way the St. Louis Cardinals have been spoken about over the last few months, you would think they were projected to be the worst team in baseball.

That isn't the case, though.

St. Louis didn't really do anything throughout the offseason and there's just been negative buzz around the team since the 2024 Major League Baseball season came to an end. While this is the case, there's a lot of talent in the organization. St. Louis was in playoff contention deep into the season last year and finished above .500 and tied for second place in the National League Central.

The Cardinals look very similar to the team from last year, but they haven't been counted out by all. ESPN's David Schoenfield predicted the Cardinals will be better than most people's expectations and be in playoff contention until the final week of the season.

"One (realistic) bold prediction: The Cardinals stay in the NL Central race until the final week of the season, even though they end the year with four rookies in the rotation -- Quinn Mathews, Michael McGreevy, Tink Hence, and Cooper Hjerpe," Schoenfield said.

If the Cardinals were to have four rookies in the rotation, that would mean there were some surprising moves made. That seems a little aggressive, but the fact that he thinks the Cardinals could be a near-playoff-caliber team is positive at least. That's how the Cardinals should be viewed. They have too much talent to be near the bottom of the barrel.

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