Cardinals at Pirates – Game 2 of 4

The Cardinal Chronicle
Game Day Preview
Cardinals at Pirates – Game 2 of 4
St. Louis — By Ray Mileur

The St. Louis Cardinals will try to build on Monday night’s dramatic ninth-inning comeback when they meet the Pittsburgh Pirates again tonight at PNC Park in the second game of this four-game National League Central series.

First pitch is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. CT.

Monday’s 4-2 comeback win felt bigger than one mark in the standings. It snapped a four-game losing streak, ended a 36-inning scoring drought in Pittsburgh, and may have given this club something even more important - the belief that they belong in the Show on the world's biggest stage.

That matters.

A baseball season is full of hinge games, nights where momentum quietly changes hands and Cardinals fans everywhere hope Monday was one of them.

J.J. Wetherholt’s game-tying homer in the ninth — in front of family and friends just miles from where he grew up — was the stuff of storybooks. Pedro Pagés started the rally with a home run of his own, and José Fermín delivered the knockout blow with a two-run double. Just like that, a club that had been lifeless offensively for eight innings walked off the field a change team, maybe for one night, maybe for an entire season.

Now comes the hard part, do it again.

The old line goes momentum is tomorrow’s starting pitcher. Tonight, the Cardinals RHP Kyle Leahy (2-3, 5.63), needs to set the tempo early and keep the bullpen in good shape as this 17-games-in-17-days grind continues.

What to Watch

Can the late inning historic offense carry over to tonight?

Can Kyle Leahy take another big step in his conversion from reliever to starter?

Can Jordan Walker find his way back at the plate?

The Cardinals need traffic on the bases early, especially tonight with Leahy on the mound. Too often lately, they’ve been asking the bullpen and late-inning heroics to rescue games. Better baseball starts with crooked numbers before the seventh inning.

Ryan Fernandez may have changed his role. Quietly, Ryan Fernandez gave St. Louis perhaps the most important outing of the night Monday with his two perfect innings, five straight strikeouts at one point, and complete control. That’s four-star stuff.

If Fernandes is heating up, and can live up to his potential, that changes the shape of the bullpen.

Every club needs a bridge arm. Fernandez looked like one in Pittsburgh.

Keep riding the kids.

Wetherholt keeps making memorable plays. Nathan Church looks more comfortable by the day. Jordan Walker’s at-bats are improving, even if the box score doesn’t fully show it.

That’s the story of 2026, the New Era Redbirds are here.

Tuesday is where the Cardinals show whether that comeback a fluke, or a sign of things to come?

By about 9 o’clock tonight, we’ll know a little more about these Cardinals.

My old-school take:

Sometimes one swing changes a clubhouse. Sometimes one inning changes a season. The notebooks of old beat writers are full of games like that.

Tonight tells us whether Monday scorecard belongs in that stack.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports