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THE CARDINAL CHRONICLE Game Day Preview: Leahy Takes the Ball as Cardinals Look to Regain Series Edge St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurThe St. Louis Cardinals return to Great American Ball Park tonight for Game 3 of their five-game series against the Cincinnati Reds after splitting Monday’s day-night doubleheader.First pitch is scheduled for 5:40 p.m. CT. Right-hander Kyle Leahy will start for St. Louis against Reds left-hander Andrew Abbott.St. Louis Cardinals: RHP Kyle Leahy, 9-4, 3.38 ERA, 105 strikeouts Cincinnati Reds: LHP Andrew Abbott, 6-7, 4.13 ERA, 102 strikeoutsThe Cardinals enter at 64-62 after winning Monday’s opener 2-1 before dropping the nightcap 6-5 in 10 innings. Cincinnati is 60-65.Monday was a long day of baseball that ultimately left both clubs where they started — one win apiece in the series.Quinn Mathews gave the Cardinals four innings of one-run baseball in Game 1, striking out seven in his second Major League start. Alec Burleson drove in both St. Louis runs, and six Cardinals pitchers combined to hold Cincinnati to three hits. Riley O’Brien struck out the side in the ninth for his 31st save.The nightcap was more difficult to put away.St. Louis led 4-1 before Cincinnati tied the game with three runs in the sixth. Bryan Torres put the Cardinals back in front with a two-out RBI single in the eighth, but Dane Myers homered with two outs in the ninth to force extra innings.The Cardinals failed to score their automatic runner in the top of the 10th before Elly De La Cruz ended it with the first walk-off hit of his Major League career, driving home Tyler Stephenson for the 6-5 Cincinnati victory.It was a game St. Louis had several opportunities to finish and did not.Tonight the Cardinals turn to one of their most reliable starters.Leahy has quietly become an important part of the rotation, entering with nine victories and a 3.38 ERA. What began as another attempt to find innings from a pitcher capable of filling multiple roles has developed into something much more substantial.Leahy has earned his place in the rotation.He attacks the strike zone, changes speeds and generally forces opponents to earn their way on base. At Great American Ball Park, that becomes especially important. Walks in front of Cincinnati’s power hitters can turn into crooked numbers quickly.De La Cruz remains the hitter around whom the Cardinals must build their plan. Even while working through a recent slump, his combination of power and speed makes every trip to the plate dangerous. Sal Stewart, Tyler Stephenson and Eugenio Suárez give Cincinnati additional threats behind him.Leahy does not need to dominate that lineup. He needs to keep it under control, limit free passes and give the Cardinals another six competitive innings.The bullpen could use it.Monday’s doubleheader required the Cardinals to cover a significant number of innings with their relievers. That makes length from Leahy more valuable than usual with two more games remaining in the series after tonight.St. Louis will face a familiar opponent in Abbott.The left-hander is 6-7 with a 4.13 ERA and has already faced the Cardinals several times in his career. He does not overwhelm hitters with velocity, but he changes speeds effectively and can create problems when opponents become impatient.The Cardinals should have a lineup heavy with right-handed bats against him.Joshua Báez, Iván Herrera, Jordan Walker, José Fermín, Masyn Winn and Blaze Jordan all give St. Louis options against the Cincinnati left-hander.Báez remains one of the most closely watched hitters in the lineup after his historic three-home-run Major League debut Saturday at Wrigley Field. The Reds gave him another lesson in how quickly Major League pitchers adjust Monday, and that process will continue throughout the remainder of the season.The Cardinals do not need Báez to reproduce his debut. They need quality at-bats around him.Burleson continues to produce in the middle of the order and drove in both runs in Monday’s opener. Walker remains one of the club’s primary power threats, while Herrera gives St. Louis another hitter capable of controlling the strike zone and extending innings.This lineup is at its best when those hitters are contributing together rather than waiting for one home run to provide the offense.That will be especially important against Abbott.The Cardinals are still in the National League Wild Card race, but there is little room for giving games away. They have played better baseball over the past two weeks, won a series at Wrigley Field and climbed back above .500, but Monday night was another reminder of how quickly a winnable game can disappear.Five-game series are unusual. They also create an opportunity to make up ground quickly.The Cardinals do not need to concern themselves with winning four of five or calculating what Thursday’s standings might look like.They need to win tonight.Leahy has given them a good chance to do that most of the season.Give him some runs, protect the baseball and finish the game when the opportunity is there.After splitting 20 innings of baseball Monday, the series essentially begins again tonight. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports &amp; MiLB Today Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, prospect updates and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.comPhoto Credit: Kyle Leahy, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB

Leahy Takes the Ball as Cardinals Look to Regain Series Edge

THE CARDINAL CHRONICLE No Games, No Problem: A Closer Look at the Cardinals’ Top 10 Prospects St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurWith no minor league games on the schedule Monday, this is a good time to step back from the daily box scores and take a broader look at where the Cardinals’ farm system stands.And right now, the top of the system is not short on production.The Cardinals’ Top 10 prospects are not just names on a list. Several of them are putting together seasons that deserve a longer look, from Rainiel Rodriguez continuing to produce at Double-A, to Joshua Báez reaching 34 home runs and 90 RBIs, and getting called up to Leo Bernal giving Memphis steady offense at a premium position.There are arms here, too.Liam Doyle, Tanner Franklin, Quinn Mathews and Jurrangelo Cijntje all bring different looks, different development paths and different questions, but all four remain important pieces of the Cardinals’ pitching picture.So with the farm quiet for a day, let’s talk through the Top 10.Rainiel Rodriguez remains the top prospect in the system, and the case is not hard to understand.Rodriguez is a catcher at Double-A, and he is hitting .304 with a .922 OPS, 18 home runs and 63 RBIs. That combination of age-to-level performance, position and offensive production keeps him at the front of the line.There are prospects who put up numbers. There are catchers who can hit a little. Rodriguez is doing both at a level where the game usually starts separating real prospects from good lower-level performers.That matters.A catcher with legitimate offensive impact changes the way a system looks. Rodriguez has power, run production and enough offensive consistency to keep the spotlight on him. For now, he remains the best blend of upside, value and production in the Cardinals’ system.Liam Doyle sits at No. 2, and while the ERA at 4.28 does not scream dominance on its own, the strikeouts tell a bigger part of the story.Doyle has 106 strikeouts in 82 innings at Double-A. That is the carrying tool. The swing-and-miss remains real, and left-handed starters with that kind of strikeout ability do not stay hidden for long.The next step is sharpening the command, working deeper into games and finding more consistency from start to start. But Doyle is still one of the most important arms in the system because the stuff gives him a chance to impact games even when the final line is not perfect.Joshua Báez at No. 3 has had one of the loudest offensive seasons in the organization before being called up to St. Louis.The numbers speak for themselves: .256 average, .901 OPS, 34 home runs and 90 RBIs. That is middle-of-the-order production that the Cardinals are now looking for down the stretch in pursuit of a Wild Card ticket.Báez has always had the raw power, but this season has turned that power into a full-season headline. Thirty-four home runs and 90 RBIs is not projection. That is production. The strikeouts will always be part of the evaluation, but the impact was impossible to ignore.Alexander Frias is the new name at No. 4, and his season has been hard to miss.Frias is hitting .333 with a .959 OPS, nine home runs and 65 RBIs. That is a strong offensive profile, especially from an outfielder who brings athleticism and a growing track record of production.He has moved quickly into the upper tier of this list because he is not just flashing tools. He is performing.Frias still has development ahead of him, but the bat has made a strong first impression. When a player comes into the system and immediately produces like this, the ranking has to reflect it.Tanner Franklin at No. 5 gives the Cardinals another Double-A arm worth tracking.Franklin’s line — 4.30 ERA, 1.31 WHIP, 103 strikeouts in 81.2 innings — shows both the work still ahead and the reason he remains firmly in the Top 10.He misses bats. He has already topped 100 strikeouts. And he has done it at Double-A, where hitters are better prepared to punish mistakes.Like Doyle, Franklin’s next step is consistency. But the strikeout total keeps him near the top of the pitching group.Leo Bernal at No. 6 may not get the same level of attention as some of the louder names, but he keeps producing.Bernal is hitting .285 with an .850 OPS, 15 home runs and 73 RBIs at Triple-A Memphis.For a catcher, that is a serious offensive season.Bernal has long carried value because of the defensive profile, but the bat has continued to come along. When a catcher is producing at Triple-A, driving in runs and showing double-digit home run power, he becomes more than organizational depth.He becomes part of the future roster conversation.Brandon Clarke remains at No. 7, and his ranking is still tied more to what he can become than what the current stat line says.Clarke has worked only 15.1 innings, with a 4.70 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 20 strikeouts at High-A. The sample is small, but the strikeout rate and quality of stuff keep him in the Top 10.This is not a finished product. It is a development profile.The Cardinals will be patient here, because arms like Clarke do not come along every day. The next step is health, innings and refinement.Quinn Mathews checks in at No. 8, though his value inside the organization may be greater than the ranking suggests.Mathews has thrown 99 innings with a 3.27 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 120 strikeouts at Triple-A.That is a strong season.He has already shown he can handle upper-level hitters, miss bats and provide rotation depth. With Mathews getting the call to start Game 1 of the doubleheader in Cincinnati, the timing of this spotlight is fitting.He has done the work at Memphis. Now comes another chance to show how that translates at the big-league level.Jurrangelo Cijntje at No. 9 remains one of the most interesting arms in the system.The season line — 5.33 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, 132 strikeouts in 104.2 innings — reflects both the upside and the turbulence. The ERA is higher than you would like, but the strikeout total is loud.And his last start was a reminder of why he remains so intriguing.Cijntje struck out 11 over 6.1 innings for Memphis before leaving with a hamstring injury. The injury concern is real, but so was the performance. When he is right, the swing-and-miss is not hard to see.The Cardinals will hope the hamstring issue is not serious, because Cijntje still has the kind of arm that can change a pitching staff’s outlook.Josiah Ragsdale rounds out the Top 10, and his production makes him more than just a new name on the board.Ragsdale is hitting .307 with a .990 OPS, 21 home runs and 55 RBIs. Those are loud numbers, and they are the kind that force a player into the spotlight quickly.There is always an adjustment period when a player changes organizations or moves into a new setting, but production travels. Ragsdale has shown power, run production and the ability to impact the ball.That is why he is here.What stands out most about this Top 10 is the balance.There are catchers. There are outfielders. There are left-handed arms. There are power bats. There are strikeout pitchers. There are players already knocking on the door and players still building their case in the lower levels.The system is not perfect. No farm system is.But this group has real production behind it.Rodriguez looks like a legitimate top prospect. Báez has turned power into a season-long statement. Frias has pushed his way into the upper tier. Bernal is producing at Triple-A. Mathews is getting another big-league opportunity. Cijntje just flashed dominance before the injury. Ragsdale has added another power bat to the mix.That is a good place to be.On a night without minor league games, the daily box score is quiet.The bigger picture is not.The Cardinals’ Top 10 prospects are giving the organization plenty to talk about.

No Games, No Problem: A Closer Look at the Cardinals’ Top 10 Prospects

THE CARDINAL CHRONICLE Cardinals Hammer Cubs, Take Series at Wrigley St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurThe St. Louis Cardinals did not need another historic afternoon from Joshua Báez.They had the rest of the lineup for that.One day after Báez authored one of the greatest debuts in Major League Baseball history, the Cardinals came back Sunday afternoon at Wrigley Field and did something almost as important.They won the series.St. Louis beat the Chicago Cubs, 11-4, using a 13-hit attack, four RBIs from Alec Burleson, four more from Jordan Walker, a strong enough start from Hunter Dobbins, and the kind of early pressure that never let the Cubs settle into the game.Saturday was history.Sunday was business.And for the Cardinals, that combination made for one very good weekend in Chicago.The Cardinals dropped Friday’s opener, 3-0, in a game where Matthew Liberatore pitched well but received no support. Báez changed the entire tone Saturday with three home runs in his major league debut, powering St. Louis to an 8-4 win.Then Sunday, the Cardinals made sure the weekend did not stop with one unforgettable moment.They finished the job.St. Louis jumped in front immediately in the first inning. JJ Wetherholt reached ahead of Burleson, and Burleson did what he has done all season: produce. He drove a two-run homer to right field, giving the Cardinals a quick 2-0 lead and putting Chicago starter Edward Cabrera under pressure before the Cubs ever came to bat.That mattered.After being shut out Friday, the Cardinals spent the final two games of the series looking like a completely different offense. Saturday was driven by Báez. Sunday was more balanced and, in some ways, even more encouraging.The Cardinals added another run in the second. Jimmy Crooks reached, and Blaze Jordan singled to center to bring him home, stretching the lead to 3-0.That gave Dobbins some early room, and for a pitcher who has been on the wrong end of too many low-support starts lately, the cushion had to feel different.The Cubs did answer in the third.James Triantos reached, and Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a two-run homer to right field, cutting the Cardinals’ lead to 3-2. Wrigley Field had life, and the Cubs had a chance to pull the game back into their style.The Cardinals shut that down in the fourth.That inning turned the game from competitive to controlled.Masyn Winn walked, Crooks singled, and Blaze Jordan reached to load the bases. Wetherholt drew a walk to force in Winn and make it 4-2. Iván Herrera followed with a sacrifice fly to right, scoring Crooks and pushing the lead to 5-2.Then Burleson came through again.With two runners aboard, he singled to left, bringing home Wetherholt and Jordan. The Cardinals led 7-2, and Cabrera’s day was almost done.Walker made sure there was no escape.He came up later in the inning and launched a two-run homer to center field, scoring Burleson and giving St. Louis a 9-2 lead.Six runs in the fourth.A seven-run lead.A series sitting firmly in the Cardinals’ hands.That is how a team takes control.The Cardinals did not wait for one swing. They built the inning. Walks. Singles. Sacrifice fly. Two-run single. Two-run homer. Several different hitters doing their part, one after another, until the inning became too much for Chicago to survive.That was the difference.Cabrera lasted just 3.2 innings, allowing seven runs on six hits and three walks. Ryan Rolison came in and gave up Walker’s homer, and by the time the fourth inning ended, the Cubs were chasing a game that had already tilted hard toward St. Louis.Dobbins did not make it perfect, but he made it work.He went five innings, allowing two runs on two hits. He walked four and struck out seven. The walks kept him from working deeper into the game, but he missed bats, limited damage, and kept the Cubs from putting together the kind of inning they needed to get back into it.The Crow-Armstrong homer was the only real damage against him.After that, Dobbins protected the lead and handed the game to the bullpen with the Cardinals still in complete control.Luis Gastelum took it from there and gave St. Louis two important scoreless innings. He allowed one hit, struck out three and kept the Cubs from building any late momentum. That bridge mattered, especially with the Cardinals already holding a big lead and looking to avoid unnecessary late-inning drama.The Cardinals added two more in the eighth.Wetherholt and Herrera reached, and Walker drove a double to deep right field, scoring both runners and pushing the lead to 11-2. It was Walker’s fourth RBI of the afternoon and another strong statement from a bat that has become one of the most important in the Cardinals’ lineup.The Cubs scratched across a run in the eighth on Tyrone Taylor’s sacrifice fly after Seiya Suzuki doubled and moved to third on a wild pitch. Chicago added one more late, but the game had long since been decided.The Cardinals had already done the damage.Burleson finished 3-for-5 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs scored. Walker went 3-for-4 with a homer, two doubles and four RBIs. Wetherholt reached three times, scored three runs and drove in one. Herrera drove in a run and scored. Crooks had two hits and scored twice. Blaze Jordan had two hits, drove in a run and scored.That is a winning box score.Báez, after Saturday’s historic three-homer debut, went hitless Sunday. That is going to happen. Baseball has a way of reminding everyone that yesterday’s legend still has to take today’s at-bats.But the best part for the Cardinals was that Báez did not have to carry them again.Burleson picked him up.Walker picked him up.Wetherholt set the table.Crooks and Jordan extended innings.The lineup looked deeper.That is the larger point.One historic debut can create a spark. A full lineup doing damage can turn that spark into something more useful. Sunday’s win showed the Cardinals did not need Báez to hit three more home runs to beat the Cubs. They needed the offense to keep moving.It did.The Cardinals finished the weekend by taking two of three at Wrigley Field, and that carries weight. This was not just another road series. This was the Cubs. This was August. This was a team the Cardinals are trying to chase. This was the kind of weekend that could have turned ugly after Friday’s shutout.Instead, St. Louis answered with 19 runs over the final two games.More importantly, the Cardinals took the series.They hit. They pitched well enough. They made Chicago chase. They turned Saturday’s emotion into Sunday’s execution.That is how a club builds something.There are still questions. There are still standings to climb. There is still a long road between being alive and being dangerous.But this weekend at Wrigley gave the Cardinals something they badly needed.A historic moment.A series win.And a lineup that suddenly looks a lot harder to pitch through.Cardinals 11, Cubs 4.Saturday belonged to Báez.Sunday belonged to the lineup.The Cardinals took the series at Wrigley.That’s a winner. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports &amp; MiLB Today Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, prospect updates and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.comPhoto Credit: Jordan Walker, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB

Cardinals Hammer Cubs, Take Series at Wrigley

The Cardinal Chronicle Jurrangelo Cijntje Named Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Week St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurJurrangelo Cijntje keeps giving the Cardinals reasons to take notice.Cijntje, pitching for Triple-A Memphis, is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Week after edging out Cooper Hjerpe in one of the better upper-level pitching battles of the season.Cijntje worked 6.1 innings, allowing only two hits, one run, one earned run and one walk while striking out 11. He did not allow a home run, finished with a 1.42 ERA, a 0.47 WHIP and posted the top weekly pitching value at 21.2.That is a dominant Triple-A line.The strikeouts were the separator. Eleven punchouts over 6.1 innings will jump off any report, but the rest of the line made it even stronger. Cijntje allowed just two hits, kept traffic off the bases and controlled the game from the mound. A 0.47 WHIP at Triple-A is not something you brush aside.Cooper Hjerpe made the decision close.Hjerpe worked 7.1 innings, allowing four hits, one run, one earned run and five walks while striking out 10. His 1.23 ERA was slightly better than Cijntje’s, and the extra inning of work gave him a strong case. But the five walks opened the door, and Cijntje’s cleaner WHIP, fewer baserunners and higher strikeout efficiency gave him the edge.This was not a case of one pitcher winning by default.Both arms gave Memphis strong outings. Both missed bats. Both limited damage. Both showed why upper-level pitching remains one of the most important areas to watch in the Cardinals’ system.But Cijntje’s outing had the sharper overall profile.For a pitcher with his unique background and high-upside arm, this was the kind of performance that reinforces the progress. The stuff has always been intriguing. The question has been whether he can command it well enough to let that stuff carry him against better hitters.This week, he did.Cijntje allowed only three total baserunners across 6.1 innings, struck out 11 and kept the ball in the yard. That combination wins a lot of arguments.The Cardinal Chronicle’s Pitcher of the Week honor goes to the arm that delivered the best full performance, and Cijntje earned it by missing bats, limiting traffic and handling Triple-A hitters with authority.The Cardinal Chronicle Minor League Pitcher of the Week: Jurrangelo Cijntje, Triple-A MemphisWeekly Line: 6.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 11 K, 0 HR, 1.42 ERA, 0.47 WHIPWhy He Was Chosen: Cijntje delivered the best combination of dominance and command, striking out 11 while allowing only two hits and one walk over 6.1 innings. His 0.47 WHIP and swing-and-miss production gave him the edge.Also in the Mix: Cooper Hjerpe, Triple-A Memphis — Hjerpe made a strong case with 7.1 innings, one earned run and 10 strikeouts. His outing had length and run prevention, but the five walks kept him just behind Cijntje this week.Old School Take: When two Triple-A arms both give you strong outings, the little things decide it. In this case, Cijntje missed more bats and kept the bases cleaner.Eleven strikeouts. One walk. Two hits.That will win the week. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports &amp; MiLB Today Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, prospect updates and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.comPhoto Credit: Cooper Hjerpe, Memphis Redbirds | MLB

Cijntje Named MiLB Pitcher of the Week

The Cardinal Chronicle Colton Ledbetter Named Cardinals Minor League Player of the Week St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurColton Ledbetter gave Triple-A Memphis the kind of week that checks every box.Power. Extra-base damage. Run production. Speed. On-base value.Ledbetter, the Memphis Redbirds right fielder, is The Cardinal Chronicle’s Cardinals Minor League Player of the Week after putting together the strongest all-around offensive stretch in the system.Over five games, Ledbetter went 6-for-18 with three doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, seven runs scored, three walks and one stolen base. He hit .333 and posted a 1.262 OPS, finishing with the top weekly value at 26.That is a complete week at the plate.The home runs stood out, but the three doubles matter just as much. Ledbetter was not simply running into an occasional mistake. He was driving the baseball consistently, creating extra-base damage and helping fuel the Memphis offense from the middle of the order.At Triple-A, that carries weight.This is the level where performance starts to look a little different. Pitchers have a better plan, bullpens are more experienced, and hitters are tested with sequencing that looks much closer to the major-league game. Ledbetter answered that challenge with a week built on impact contact and run creation.Dakota Harris made this a real decision.Harris, playing shortstop for Double-A Springfield, went 5-for-13 with one double, three home runs, six RBIs, four runs scored, two walks and one stolen base. He hit .385 with a 1.621 OPS, and in many weeks, that line would have been enough to take the honor.But Ledbetter gets the edge because of the full weekly body of work at Triple-A. Five games, seven runs scored, five RBIs, five extra-base hits and a 1.262 OPS gave him the strongest overall case.The award goes to the player who did the most to separate himself over the week, and Ledbetter did that with a bat that kept producing damage.For Memphis, his production was exactly what a Triple-A lineup needs — a hitter who can lengthen innings, drive the baseball and put pressure on opposing pitchers.This week, Ledbetter was that hitter.The Cardinal Chronicle Minor League Player of the Week: Colton Ledbetter, RF, Triple-A MemphisWeekly Line: 5 G, 18 AB, 7 R, 6 H, 3 2B, 2 HR, 5 RBI, 3 BB, 5 K, 1 SB, .333 AVG, 1.262 OPSWhy He Was Chosen: Ledbetter delivered the best all-around offensive week in the Cardinals’ system, combining extra-base power, run production, on-base ability and speed at Triple-A. His five extra-base hits and seven runs scored helped give him the edge.Also in the Mix: Dakota Harris, SS, Double-A Springfield — Harris made a strong push after hitting .385 with three home runs, six RBIs and a 1.621 OPS over four games. His power surge kept the decision close, but Ledbetter’s full five-game week at Triple-A gave him the slight edge.Old School Take: There is something to be said for a hitter who does a little bit of everything. Ledbetter hit for power, got on base, scored runs, drove in runs and added a stolen base for good measure.That is winning baseball.Colton Ledbetter earned this one by filling up the line and doing damage at the highest level of the farm. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports &amp; MiLB Today Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, prospect updates and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.comPhoto Credit: Colten Ledbetter, Memphis Redbirds | MLB

Ledbetter Named MiLB Player of the Week

THE CARDINAL CHRONICLE Series Preview: Cards Open Five-Game Series in Against the Reds with a Doubleheader St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurThe St. Louis Cardinals take their Wild Card chase to Cincinnati today, opening a five-game, four-day series against the Reds with a day-night doubleheader at Great American Ball Park.The opener is scheduled for 12:40 p.m. CT, with left-hander Quinn Mathews returning to the Cardinals rotation. Andre Pallante will start Game 2 at 5:40 p.m. The unusual schedule immediately puts pressure on both pitching staffs and makes innings from the two Cardinals starters especially valuable.St. Louis arrives in Cincinnati at 63-61 after taking two of three from the Cubs at Wrigley Field and winning the season series against Chicago, seven games to six. The Cardinals have won seven of their last 10 and remain 3½ games out of the final National League Wild Card position.That is close enough to matter.The Cardinals sold at the trade deadline, moving Dustin May, JoJo Romero and Lars Nootbaar, but the younger roster has continued to win. Instead of fading from the race, St. Louis has climbed above .500 and given itself a reason to make the final six weeks interesting.Now comes a series it needs to take advantage of, because Cincinnati enters below .500 and behind St. Louis in the standings. The Reds remain dangerous, particularly at Great American Ball Park, where one mistake can quickly become a home run. Elly De La Cruz, Sal Stewart, Eugenio Suárez and Tyler Stephenson give Cincinnati enough offense to punish sloppy pitching, and the Cardinals cannot assume their recent momentum will simply carry over.Mathews gets the first opportunity today.The 25-year-old made his Major League debut earlier this month in Toronto, allowing two runs over five innings. He showed poise despite working through traffic and looked comfortable enough against Major League hitters to earn another opportunity.His command will again be the key. Mathews has enough stuff to get big-league hitters out, but Great American Ball Park is not a forgiving place for elevated fastballs or missed locations. He needs to attack the strike zone, trust his changeup and breaking ball and avoid giving Cincinnati free baserunners.The Cardinals also need Mathews to provide some length. With another game only a few hours later and three more games following before the club leaves Cincinnati, burning through the bullpen in Game 1 would create problems that could last the entire series.That makes Pallante an ideal choice for the nightcap.Pallante enters at 12-6 with a 3.46 ERA and has become one of the most dependable starters on the staff. When his sinker is working at the bottom of the zone, he creates ground balls, quick innings and exactly the kind of efficient outing the Cardinals could use in the second game of a doubleheader.Cincinnati is expected to counter with Rhett Lowder in Game 2, with Andrew Abbott and Chase Burns scheduled later in the series. Burns, in particular, represents the toughest pitching challenge of the week, which makes taking advantage of today’s opportunities even more important.The Cardinals offense also arrives with a little more electricity than it had a few weeks ago.Joshua Báez’s historic three-home-run Major League debut at Wrigley Field immediately gave the lineup another legitimate power threat. Alec Burleson continues to be one of the club’s most reliable run producers, Jordan Walker has supplied consistent power, and JJ Wetherholt continues to create opportunities near the top of the order.Báez does not need to reproduce his spectacular debut every afternoon. What matters is that his presence lengthens the lineup and gives opposing pitchers another hitter capable of changing a game with one swing.That young core is becoming the story of the second half.The Cardinals may have shifted their focus toward the future at the deadline, but development does not require surrendering the present. Wetherholt, Walker, Báez, Blaze Jordan, Nathan Church, Masyn Winn and the rest of this younger roster are learning while playing games that still matter in the standings.That is exactly how it should be.Five games in four days against a division opponent presents both opportunity and danger. Win three and the Cardinals leave Cincinnati having taken another series. Win four, and the Wild Card standings could look considerably different by Thursday night.But there is little reason to look that far ahead.Today provides two games and two chances to win.Mathews gets the first baseball. Pallante gets the second.The Cardinals left Chicago with momentum, a winning record and renewed life in the postseason race.Now they need to keep it going in Cincinnati. The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports &amp; MiLB Today Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.Check out The Cardinal Chronicle for more St. Louis Cardinals coverage, daily farm reports, prospect updates and old-school baseball commentary: www.cardinalchronicle.comPhoto Credit: Quinn Mathews, St. Louis Cardinals | MLB

Cards Open Five-Game Series Against the Reds with a Doubleheader

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

Leahy Takes the Ball as Cardinals Look to Regain Series Edge

No Games, No Problem: A Closer Look at the Cardinals’ Top...

Cardinals Hammer Cubs, Take Series at Wrigley

Cijntje Named MiLB Pitcher of the Week

Ledbetter Named MiLB Player of the Week

Cards Open Five-Game Series Against the Reds with a Doubl...