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Cardinal Chronicle May’s Gem Wasted as Cardinals Swept Out of Milwaukee St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurMILWAUKEE — The Cardinals handed the baseball to Dustin May on Wednesday afternoon with the kind of assignment that tells you plenty about where this club stands.May, arguably the staff ace and certainly one of the organization’s most valuable trade-deadline bargaining chips, was sent into American Family Field to stop the bleeding, slow down the Brewers and drag St. Louis out of Milwaukee with at least one win.He nearly did more than that.May carried a no-hitter through seven innings, striking out nine, walking nobody and giving the Cardinals exactly the kind of big-boy start a club needs in a division road game. For seven innings, he silenced Milwaukee, worked efficiently and gave St. Louis every chance to avoid a sweep.Then the eighth inning arrived.Garrett Mitchell broke up the no-hit bid with a leadoff double, Luis Rengifo followed with a bunt single, and the Brewers finally forced the Cardinals into the late-inning game they have owned all week. Christian Yelich tied it with a two-out single, and Milwaukee took the lead when Masyn Winn booted Jackson Chourio’s grounder, allowing Sal Frelick to score in a 2-1 Brewers victory.Mark one up for the Brewers’ bullpen.That is the brutal bottom line from this series.The Cardinals sent May — their best arm at the moment and one of their most interesting chips if July forces difficult decisions — into a matchup against Milwaukee’s bullpen game. May dominated. Milwaukee’s bullpen survived. And the Cardinals’ offense, which has looked far too much like a Triple-A club for most of this month, left town with another quiet afternoon and a three-game sweep hung around its neck.St. Louis managed its lone run in the fourth inning, when Jordan Walker led off with a single and scored on Bryan Torres’ triple. That should have opened the door. Instead, it became the entire day’s production. Chad Patrick allowed one run over four innings, then Shane Drohan, Aaron Ashby and Trevor Megill combined for five scoreless innings to close it out.The Cardinals had the better starting pitching story. The Brewers had the better team.That has become the separator.May entered the day with a 5.00 ERA, but this was easily one of his sharpest outings of the year. He needed only 82 pitches to get through seven no-hit innings, according to MLB.com, and the Brewers had only two baserunners to that point — a hit batter and a catcher’s interference call. Neither advanced beyond first base.For a rebuilding club still trying to decide what it is, that kind of start matters. It matters for the standings. It matters for credibility. And it matters for the front office, because if the Cardinals do reach the deadline as sellers — or even as selective reshufflers — May’s name will carry real value.But Wednesday also showed the other side of that conversation.A pitcher can only carry a club so far when the bats are silent.The Cardinals lost despite allowing only three hits. They lost despite getting seven no-hit innings from their starter. They lost because the offense again failed to build a cushion, failed to pressure Milwaukee’s bullpen and failed to respond when the game tightened late.That is how sweeps happen.Milwaukee, meanwhile, continues to look like the sharper, more complete team in the division. The Brewers have won 15 of their last 19 games and remain atop the NL Central. The Cardinals have lost seven of nine.This was not a blowout. It was worse in some ways.It was a game St. Louis had in its hands.May did his job. The pitching gave the Cardinals a chance. But the offense again came up short, the defense cracked at the wrong moment, and Milwaukee found a way to turn one inning into a win.That is what good teams do.That is what the Cardinals did not do.St. Louis now heads home to open a three-game series against the Cubs on Friday, with Kyle Leahy scheduled to start. &nbsp;The division gauntlet does not ease up. After being swept out of Milwaukee, the Cardinals do not need speeches. They need runs.And they need them fast. Photo Credit: Union LeaderThe Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, game recaps and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.com

May’s Gem Wasted as Cardinals Swept Out of Milwaukee

Lars Nootbaar’s Value Comes With One Big Question: Time St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurST. LOUIS, MO — Lars Nootbaar’s return is about more than simply getting another outfielder back into the Cardinals’ lineup.It may also give St. Louis one of its more interesting trade deadline questions.Nootbaar, who opened the season on the 60-day injured list after offseason procedures on both heels, has begun working his way back through a minor league rehab assignment. The timing matters. The 2026 MLB trade deadline is set for Monday, Aug. 3, at 6 p.m. ET, giving the Cardinals a little more than two months to see what kind of player Nootbaar is after surgery — and what kind of market might develop if they decide to listen.That is the heart of the matter.Nootbaar’s value comes with one big question: time.The Cardinals do not need to rush him to market. They do not need to shop him like an expiring contract. They do not need to accept a discounted return simply because his post-rehab runway may be short before the deadline. Nootbaar is making $5.25 million in 2026 and is not scheduled to become a free agent until after the 2027 season, according to Spotrac.That changes the leverage.For a contender, Nootbaar would not be a two-month rental. He would be an affordable, controllable, left-handed hitting outfielder with on-base skills and postseason usefulness. Those players matter in July, especially for clubs trying to improve without taking on a major long-term contract.For the Cardinals, however, the calculation is more complicated.If Nootbaar comes back quickly and produces in St. Louis, his value could climb in a hurry. A healthy version of Nootbaar gives the Cardinals a more complete outfield, another professional at-bat and a player capable of helping them in the middle of a postseason race. If they remain in the National League Wild Card picture, that alone has value.But if the Cardinals decide to sell or retool at the deadline, Nootbaar becomes a different kind of asset. He is not the type of player who should be moved just to clear a roster spot. He is the type of player who should require a real return — likely young pitching, controllable upside or a prospect package that helps the organization beyond 2026.The danger is selling the question mark instead of the player.Right now, the question mark is health. The rehab numbers may be encouraging, but opposing front offices will want to see big-league timing, game speed, defensive movement and day-to-day durability. Heel surgery is not a paper cut. The Cardinals need to know whether Nootbaar is simply back on the field or truly back to being himself.That is why patience may be the strongest position.If Nootbaar gets a month of strong production before Aug. 3, the Cardinals can listen from strength. If the market treats him like a compromised player, they can keep him, let him finish the season, and revisit his value in the offseason. There is no reason to sell him for pennies on the dollar.That is the old-school baseball answer: do not trade a good player just because somebody asks nicely.Nootbaar still fits the Cardinals if they are trying to win. He still fits the market if another club is willing to pay properly. What the Cardinals cannot afford is to let the calendar make the decision for them.The deadline will come fast enough.The question is whether Nootbaar will have enough time to remind everyone what he is worth before it gets here. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, prospect reports, game recaps and old-school baseball perspective at <a data-mce-href="Check%20out%20**The%20Cardinal%20Chronicle**%20for%20more%20St.%20Louis%20Cardinals%20coverage,%20prospect%20reports,%20game%20recaps%20and%20old-school%20baseball%20perspective%20at%20**[www.cardinalchronicle.com](http:/www.cardinalchronicle.com)**." href="Check%20out%20**The%20Cardinal%20Chronicle**%20for%20more%20St.%20Louis%20Cardinals%20coverage,%20prospect%20reports,%20game%20recaps%20and%20old-school%20baseball%20perspective%20at%20**[www.cardinalchronicle.com](http:/www.cardinalchronicle.com)**." title="Check out **The Cardinal Chronicle** for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, prospect reports, game recaps and old-school baseball perspective at **[www.cardinalchronicle.com](http://www.cardinalchronicle.com)**.">www.cardinalchronicle.com.</a>Photo Credit: Japan Times

Lars Nootbaar’s Value Comes With One Big Question: Time

The Cardinal Chronicle The St. Louis Cardinals’ Deadline Dilemma: Buy, Sell or Both? St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurThe St. Louis Cardinals may be approaching one of the more interesting trade deadlines in recent franchise memory.Not because they are clear sellers.Not because they are obvious buyers.But because they may be both.That is the uncomfortable middle ground the Cardinals appear to be standing on as the Aug. 3 Major League Baseball trade deadline begins to come into view. At 29-25, St. Louis has played well enough to stay relevant in the postseason race, but the organization also remains under the long shadow of a bigger-picture reset under president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom.That creates a deadline puzzle without an easy answer.The Cardinals are not in a position where they should be emptying the farm system for a short-term rental. That kind of thinking helped get the organization into trouble in the first place. But they also are not buried in the standings, waving the white flag before Memorial Day and pretending the season is already over.In this new playoff era, staying alive matters. October is no longer reserved only for the perfect teams. Sometimes it belongs to the team that gets hot at the right time, has enough pitching to survive a short series and catches a break when the bracket opens up.That is why this deadline may require something more nuanced than the old labels.The Cardinals may need to sell from areas of short-term value while buying — or at least acquiring — pieces that fit the next good St. Louis club.In plain English, that means moving certain veterans, impending free agents or peak-value relievers if the return is right, while avoiding the temptation to strip the roster down to the studs. There is a difference between rebuilding and quitting. Cardinals fans know the difference.Several clubs already shape up as logical trade partners, including the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Toronto Blue Jays and Seattle Mariners. Each has a different connection to St. Louis, and each could fit a different part of the Cardinals’ deadline board.Boston may be the most obvious name because of Bloom’s history with the Red Sox. Familiarity does not guarantee a trade, but it does make the conversation easier. Boston needs bullpen depth, and the Cardinals have late-inning arms who would draw interest if made available. JoJo Romero would fit almost any contender looking for a left-handed weapon. Riley O’Brien, given his emergence in the ninth inning, would be the type of reliever teams dream about in October.That does not mean St. Louis should be shopping O’Brien like a clearance-rack item. Quite the opposite. His value to the Cardinals is significant because he is effective, affordable and controllable. Those are exactly the kind of players a transitioning club should be careful with. But if another front office wants to overpay for bullpen help, Bloom has to listen. That is the job.The Mets are another natural fit. These two clubs have done deadline business before, and New York rarely acts shy when trying to patch a roster for a playoff run. If the Mets need bullpen help or outfield stability, St. Louis has names that could interest them. Lars Nootbaar, depending on his health and production, remains one of the more fascinating names in this entire conversation. He is not a pure rental, and his value is tied directly to how quickly he proves he is healthy and productive again.The Toronto Blue Jays could come calling for pitching. The Blue Jays have shown interest in Cardinals arms before, and Dustin May would be the kind of starter a contender studies closely. He is on a one-year deal, has postseason appeal if healthy and effective, and may not fit St. Louis’ long-term roster picture. Ryne Stanek also fits the profile of a veteran reliever who could have more deadline value to a contender than long-term value to the Cardinals.Seattle is another club worth watching, especially if the Mariners look for left-handed relief. Romero would make sense for them, and Seattle has the kind of young pitching inventory that should interest St. Louis. That is the kind of deal the Cardinals should be exploring — not simply moving talent for the sake of movement, but converting short-window assets into longer-window value.That is the fine line Bloom must walk.If the Cardinals remain in the playoff hunt, there will be pressure to add. There should be. A winning season still matters in St. Louis. A postseason berth still matters. An October gate still matters to a franchise watching its dollars closely. And for a fan base that has had to swallow plenty of “wait until tomorrow” sermons, there is nothing wrong with wanting the club to compete today.But the Cardinals cannot let a decent first half convince them to mortgage the next five years.That is where the buy-and-sell strategy makes sense.Move the players whose value may never be higher. Hold the players who are part of the next core. Add only if the price is reasonable. Avoid rentals that cost real prospects. Target controllable pitching. Take advantage of desperate contenders. Do not be the desperate club.The Cardinals’ deadline will not be judged simply by whether they added a name or moved a name. It will be judged by whether they understood who they are.This is not a finished product. It is not a hopeless product either.That makes the deadline harder.And more important.For years, the Cardinals operated from a place of certainty. They were buyers because they were the Cardinals. They expected October because October was part of the rhythm of baseball in St. Louis. That old certainty is gone, at least for now. But the standard should not be gone with it.The Cardinals should not sell off the season if they are still in the race.They also should not pretend one deadline splash fixes everything.The smarter path is harder, but it is also clearer: compete honestly in 2026 while building responsibly for 2027 and beyond.That means the Cardinals may have to do both.Buy where it makes sense.Sell where it is smart.And above all, remember that in St. Louis, the goal is not just to survive the deadline.The goal is to build a club worthy of October again. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future. Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, game recaps and old-school baseball commentary: <a data-mce-href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" title="www.cardinalchronicle.com&nbsp;" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.cardinalchronicle.com&nbsp;</a>Photo Credit: The Jewish Telegraphic Agency

The St. Louis Cardinals’ Deadline Dilemma: Buy, Sell or Both?

The Cardinal Chronicle Pitcher of the Day: Pete Hansen Gives Memphis Five Shutout Innings St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurPete Hansen did not need to be perfect Wednesday night.He just needed to be steady.Hansen earns The Cardinal Chronicle Pitcher of the Day honors after throwing five innings, allowing no earned runs, striking out five and walking one in Memphis’ 5-2 win over Omaha.On a night when Joshua Báez supplied the thunder with two home runs, Hansen gave the Redbirds the foundation. He allowed five hits, but he kept the game under control, limited damage, and gave Memphis a chance to let its offense work its way into the night.That matters.Triple-A lineups do not always let pitchers cruise, and Omaha made Hansen work. But he did what good starters do. He competed in the strike zone, avoided the big inning, and handed the game over with Memphis positioned to win.The final line was clean: five innings, five hits, one unearned run, no earned runs, one walk and five strikeouts.It was not a loud outing in the way a double-digit strikeout night gets loud. It was better described as professional. Hansen kept the Redbirds in the game, protected the scoreboard, and gave Memphis a winning start.That is the kind of pitching line that can get overlooked when a teammate is hitting baseballs into another county. But without Hansen’s five steady innings, Báez’s power surge might not have carried the same weight.Báez brought the thunder.Hansen gave Memphis the footing.The Cardinal Chronicle Pitcher of the Day Pete Hansen, Memphis Redbirds 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway SportsCheck out The Cardinal Chronicle for more Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, game recaps and old-school baseball commentary: <a data-mce-href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" title="www.cardinalchronicle.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-mce-selected="inline-boundary">www.cardinalchronicle.com</a>

Pitcher of the Day: Pete Hansen Gives Memphis Five Shutout Innings

The Cardinal Chronicle Player of the Day: Joshua Báez Keeps Power Surge Rolling&nbsp; St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurJoshua Báez did not just have another good night Wednesday.He made sure there was no debate.Báez earns The Cardinal Chronicle Player of the Day honors after going 2-for-5 with two home runs, three RBIs and two runs scored in Memphis’ 5-2 win over Omaha.For the second straight night, Báez left the yard twice. That is four home runs in two games, and when a hitter does that at Triple-A, it stops being just another hot box-score line. It becomes a storyline.His first home run Wednesday tied the game in the sixth inning. His second came an inning later, a two-run shot that gave Memphis separation and helped put the Redbirds in control. That is not empty production. That is game-shaping power.Báez has always had loud tools, but nights like this are where raw ability starts turning into something more meaningful. The ball is jumping off his bat, the damage is coming in big moments, and Memphis is benefiting from every bit of it.This was not a ceremonial pick. Báez earned it the old-fashioned way — by changing the game.The Cardinal Chronicle Player of the Day Joshua Báez, Memphis Redbirds 2-for-5, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway SportsCheck out The Cardinal Chronicle for more Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, game recaps and old-school baseball commentary: <a data-mce-href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" title="www.cardinalchronicle.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.cardinalchronicle.com</a>Photo Credit - Daily Memphian

Player of the Day: Joshua Báez Keeps Power Surge Rolling

The Cardinal Chronicle The Farm Report: Báez has Back-to-Back Multi-Homers Games St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurThe St. Louis Cardinals’ farm system had one clear headline Wednesday night, and it came from Omaha, where Joshua Báez continued to put baseballs in places where fielders are not allowed to stand.Báez homered twice for the second straight night, Pete Hansen delivered five strong innings, and Memphis beat Omaha 5-2 to carry the top story of the night. Peoria split a doubleheader at Wisconsin, Springfield had the night off, and Palm Beach fell to Lakeland. Memphis Redbirds — 32-21, 2nd, International League West Memphis 5, Omaha 2Joshua Báez is making noise in Triple-A, and not the soft kind.Báez went 2-for-5 with two home runs, three RBIs and two runs scored as Memphis beat Omaha 5-2 on Wednesday night. It was his second straight multi-homer game, giving him four home runs in two nights and pushing him to the front of the Memphis power conversation.The first Báez homer tied the game in the sixth inning. The second came an inning later, a two-run shot that helped give Memphis breathing room. That is the kind of production that changes a game quickly and changes how a player is being viewed even quicker.Pete Hansen gave Memphis exactly what it needed on the mound. The left-hander worked five innings, allowing five hits and one unearned run while walking one and striking out five. It was not flashy just for the sake of being flashy. It was clean, steady, winning baseball.Colton Ledbetter also helped drive the Memphis offense, and Brody Moore added a three-hit night from the bottom of the order. But this game belonged to Báez and Hansen. Báez supplied the thunder. Hansen supplied the control. That combination usually travels well. Springfield Cardinals — 20-27, 5th, Texas League North Off daySpringfield had the night off Wednesday and will return to action looking to build on a week that has included the rehab presence of Lars Nootbaar and a continued push for steadier pitching at Double-A.No box score, no forced storyline. Sometimes an off day is just an off day, and around a long minor league season, those are not exactly handed out like candy at a parade. Peoria Chiefs — 22-25, 5th, Midwest League West Game 1: Peoria 6, Wisconsin 0 Game 2: Wisconsin 12, Peoria 7Peoria split its doubleheader at Wisconsin, taking the opener 6-0 before dropping the second game 12-7.The first game belonged to Ty Van Dyke and the defense behind him. Van Dyke threw six shutout innings, working around five walks while getting plenty of help from a Chiefs infield that turned five double plays. Nolan Sparks finished the shutout with a scoreless seventh.Peoria gave Van Dyke all the support he needed in the fourth inning. Cameron Nickens opened the scoring with an RBI single, and Won-Bin Cho followed with a two-run triple off the center-field wall. Jack Gurevitch added a solo homer in the fifth, and Cade McGee followed with a two-run shot as the Chiefs doubled their lead.Game 2 got away early. Wisconsin scored six runs in the first inning, putting Peoria in a hole it could not fully climb out of. To the Chiefs’ credit, they did not disappear.Tre Richardson III and Sammy Hernandez hit back-to-back home runs in the second inning, and Peoria kept pushing. Hernandez added an RBI double, Jose Cordoba drove in two with a double, and Richardson later added an RBI triple to finish a double shy of the cycle. Hernandez added another run-scoring single, giving him three hits and three RBIs in the nightcap.But Wisconsin answered with enough offense of its own, including a three-run homer in the sixth that put the game out of reach. For Peoria, the day was a split — one sharp shutout win, one rough pitching line, and enough offensive fight in Game 2 to keep the night from feeling empty. Palm Beach Cardinals — 25-22, 2nd, Florida State League East Lakeland 7, Palm Beach 3Palm Beach could not follow Tuesday’s walk-off win with another one, falling to Lakeland 7-3 on Wednesday night.The Cardinals did get some offense, including a home run from Chase Heath and an RBI from Cash Kuiper that brought in Matthew Miura, but Palm Beach could not keep pace with Lakeland’s lineup. After entering the night at 25-21, the loss dropped Palm Beach to 25-22.It was not a headline night for the Low-A club, but Heath’s power remains worth noting. In a system where offensive consistency is still being sorted out at several levels, a home run always earns a line in the notebook. Player of the Day Joshua Báez, Memphis RedbirdsJoshua Báez earns Player of the Day honors after going 2-for-5 with two home runs, three RBIs and two runs scored in Memphis’ 5-2 win over Omaha.This was not a ceremonial pick. Báez has now homered four times in two games, and Wednesday’s swings directly shaped the Memphis win. His first homer tied the game. His second gave the Redbirds separation. That is impact, plain and simple. Pitcher of the Day Pete Hansen, Memphis RedbirdsPete Hansen earns Pitcher of the Day honors after throwing five innings, allowing no earned runs, striking out five and walking one in Memphis’ 5-2 win over Omaha.Hansen allowed five hits, but he kept the damage off the board and gave Memphis a winning start. On a night when Báez brought the thunder, Hansen gave the Redbirds the foundation. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, game recaps and old-school baseball commentary: <a data-mce-href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" href="http://www.cardinalchronicle.com" title="www.cardinalchronicle.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">www.cardinalchronicle.com&nbsp;</a>Photo Credit: MLB.com

The Farm Report: Báez has Back-to-Back Multi-Homers Games

The St. Louis Cardinal Chronicle 

The St. Louis Cardinal Chronicle is dedicated to preserving Cardinals history, covering today’s game, and following the next generation through the minor leagues. Written in the tradition of the old beat writers, it’s baseball with perspective — steady, faithful, and rooted in a lifelong love for the game.

The St. Louis Cardinal Chronicle, Ray Mileur

The Cardinal Notebook

May’s Gem Wasted as Cardinals Swept Out of Milwaukee

Lars Nootbaar’s Value Comes With One Big Question: Time

The St. Louis Cardinals’ Deadline Dilemma: Buy, Sell or B...

Pitcher of the Day: Pete Hansen Gives Memphis Five Shutou...

Player of the Day: Joshua Báez Keeps Power Surge Rolling

The Farm Report: Báez has Back-to-Back Multi-Homers Games