McGreevy Gets the Ball as Cardinals Look to Take Series in Atlanta
The Cardinal Chronicle
McGreevy Gets the Ball as Cardinals Look to Take Series in Atlanta
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur
The Cardinals opened their road series in Atlanta with the kind of win they needed.
Now comes the follow-up.
After beating the Braves 5-3 Tuesday night at Truist Park, St. Louis returns Wednesday looking to take the first two games of the series and secure another road series win against one of the National League’s top clubs.
First pitch is scheduled for 6:15 p.m. CT, with right-hander Michael McGreevy getting the ball for the Cardinals against Braves right-hander Reynaldo López.
The Cardinals enter the night at 44-38, while Atlanta comes in at 49-34 and still sits atop the National League East. The Braves may be in a rough stretch, but this is still a first-place club with power, pitching and enough experience to punish a team that assumes one good night will carry over into the next.
That is the trap the Cardinals have to avoid.
Tuesday night was a strong opener for St. Louis. Matthew Liberatore bounced back from a difficult stretch and gave the Cardinals five effective innings, allowing one run on one hit while striking out nine. That was exactly the kind of start the club needed after a rough run from the pitching staff in recent weeks.
The offense gave him just enough help.
Nelson Velázquez opened the fourth inning with a long solo home run, and Nathan Church followed later in the frame with a three-run shot to give the Cardinals control of the game. Church’s homer was his sixth of the season and his first since April 26, ending a long drought at a good time. Masyn Winn added pressure on the bases in the sixth, eventually scoring on Blaze Jordan’s sacrifice fly.
That was not a perfect win, but it was a useful one.
The Braves pushed late, trimming the lead and loading the bases in the eighth inning, but the Cardinals survived the threat. Riley O’Brien then handled the ninth for his 21st save, giving St. Louis a second straight win after a difficult stretch that had raised plenty of fair questions about the club’s footing.
Now McGreevy gets the chance to keep the line moving.
McGreevy enters at 3-6 with a 3.12 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP and 57 strikeouts. His record does not tell the full story. He has been one of the more stabilizing arms in the Cardinals’ rotation, not because he overwhelms hitters, but because he pitches with a plan. He changes speeds, works the edges, keeps the ball around the strike zone and gives his defense a chance to make plays behind him.
That kind of start plays anywhere.
It especially plays on the road against a Braves lineup that can turn mistakes into damage quickly.
Atlanta still has Matt Olson in the middle of the order, and he remains one of the primary power threats the Cardinals have to handle. Michael Harris II has been one of Atlanta’s steadier bats, and Ozzie Albies showed Tuesday that he can still create runs when given an opening. Even with Ronald Acuña Jr. on the injured list, this is not a lineup the Cardinals can treat lightly.
McGreevy has to keep Atlanta from building traffic.
That means no free passes ahead of the power bats. No leadoff walks. No middle-middle mistakes when the Braves have runners aboard. The Cardinals do not need him to chase strikeouts. They need him to stay in control of the game, cover innings and keep Atlanta from turning one swing into a crooked number.
The matchup against López will not be easy.
López enters at 3-1 with a 3.47 ERA, a 1.37 WHIP and 40 strikeouts. He has enough stuff to make the Cardinals work, and St. Louis cannot afford to give him quick innings by chasing early. The Cardinals’ best offensive approach is the same one that worked Tuesday: create traffic, force mistakes and make the bottom half of the lineup matter.
That last part was important in the opener.
Velázquez and Church supplied the biggest swings. Winn created a run with his legs. Blaze Jordan brought home an insurance run with a sacrifice fly. Those are the kinds of contributions the Cardinals need if they are going to keep winning against good teams.
Jordan Walker remains the central power threat in the lineup, entering the game with 18 home runs and 58 RBIs. Alec Burleson continues to give St. Louis a steady left-handed bat. Iván Herrera’s on-base ability remains important when he is in the lineup. JJ Wetherholt has to continue setting the table. Winn has to keep applying pressure with the glove, the arm and the legs.
The Cardinals do not need every night to be a slugfest.
They need complete baseball.
That means competitive at-bats, cleaner execution, enough starting pitching, and bullpen outs that do not require everyone in the press box to check their pulse. Tuesday had some late stress, but it also had enough of the right things to win a road game against a first-place opponent.
Wednesday is about turning that into a series win.
Atlanta has lost three straight and has dropped 13 of its last 17 games. That makes the Braves vulnerable, but not harmless. In some ways, it makes them more dangerous. A good team on a bad run is usually one swing, one clean start or one big inning away from looking like itself again.
The Cardinals cannot give them that opening.
St. Louis has been trying to prove it belongs in the contender conversation, and games like this matter. Beating Atlanta once is a good start. Taking the series in the first two games would be better. It would give the Cardinals another road series win, keep them moving in the National League race and add a little more weight to the argument that this club is flawed, but very much alive.
The Cardinals are not a finished product.
The pitching is still the question.
The offense still has quiet nights.
The bullpen can still turn comfortable baseball into a late-night prayer meeting.
But the standings are built on wins and losses, and the Cardinals have another chance Wednesday night to stack one more win against a quality opponent.
McGreevy gets the ball.
The Cardinals have the opener.
Now they get a chance to go take the series.
Game Info
Matchup: St. Louis Cardinals at Atlanta Braves
When: Wednesday, July 1, 2026
First pitch: 6:15 p.m. CT / 7:15 p.m. ET
Where: Truist Park, Atlanta
Probable Pitchers: RHP Michael McGreevy vs. RHP Reynaldo López
McGreevy: 3-6, 3.12 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 57 SO
López: 3-1, 3.47 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 40 SO
Records: Cardinals 44-38; Braves 49-34
Broadcast: Cardinals.TV / BravesVision / MLB.TV
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Photo Credit: Michael McGreevy, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB