A lot has changed in a week! The Cardinals were longshots to sneak into the postseason but after getting swept by the San Francisco Giants, they’re effectively eliminated (just 5 games, per MLB.com). The Giants looked certain to be 100-game losers, but after the sweep, they need just 1 more win to avoid triple digit losses. They’re sure to win that game at some point over these final 12, but they’ll need to do it without their best player(s). Meanwhile, the Cardinals are trying to avoid back-to-back
losing seasons for the first time since 1994 & 1995.
Losing Rafael Devers will surely make it difficult to win on the road, where the Giants have gone just 26-49 (.347). That 3-game sweep in San Francisco was the first time the Giants had done that to the Cardinals since 2001; however, the last time the Giants swept the Cardinals in St. Louis in a 3-game series was just in 2023. Still, I don’t think a case could be made that the 2023 & 2026 squads have many similarities.
So, what is there to care about with this series? Oh, I know, I know, we’re all clinging to the 1-for-4s of a lot of guys with options or are just warm bodies, but there are a few small things that tie back to the rest of the season:
- Alec Burleson leads the majors with 109 RBI and is tied with Rafael Devers for the MLB lead in doubles (36). Wilyer Abreu and Bryan Reynolds also have 36, so, it was going to be a battle down the stretch with a healthy Devers, but for now, it’d be enough to hold Burleson double-less in the series (won’t happen lol).
- The Giants are at least considering shutting down Logan Webb, in which case they might continue their history-making roster size this season with a 68th player, possibly in this series!
- Landen Roupp is the 19th Giants starting pitcher in the last decade to hit the 150 IP mark (150.2). If he can make it through 2 innings, he’ll surpass Justin Verlander’s 152 IP last season. He also might be able to surpass Logan Webb’s 160.2 IP this season. Roupp, a famous bigot, is about average relative to the other pitchers on this list in terms of mound performance. His hits per 9 and homers per 9 are right near the top. His strikeout rate is fine. But the walks (4.3 BB/9) separates him from the pack.
- Drew Gilbert has 3 triples this season and has never had more than 4 in a season (once in college, and last season in the minors). The Cardinals haven’t allowed many triples this year (14 — 5th in MLB). Also worth point out: since June 14th — so, the past 3 months — he’s slashed .239/.338/.391 (70 G, 216 PA). A very useful player.
- With three games this week in the toughest place for a left-handed batter to homer this season (seriously. Busch Stadium’s 73 Park Factor is lower than the Giants’ 77), Bryce Eldridge might not get to 20 home runs this year, but he’s just 4 away and is already just 1 of 8 Giants in the history of the franchise to hit at least 15 home runs at age 21 or younger. What a list:
- Mel Ott, 1929 (age 20) — 42 HR
- Orlando Cepeda, 1959 (age 21) — 27 HR
- Orlando Cepeda, 1958 (age 20) — 25 HR
- Mel Ott, 1930 (age 21) — 25 HR
- Willie Mays, 1951 (age 20) — 20 HR
- Whitey Lockman, 1948 (age 21) — 18 HR
- Mel Ott, 1928 (age 19) — 18 HR
- Bryce Eldridge, 2026 (age 21) — 16 HR
- Although Jung Hoo Lee — who has now completed exactly 2 years of MLB service time as of yesterday, according to Baseball Reference — has settled into being a platoon/fourth outfielder type, he went 3-for-9 in San Francisco against the Cardinals with an extra base hit — a double, which he does have 29 of already. He’s 11-for-30 in his career at Busch Stadium (.367/.387/.500 in 31 PA). One more double and he’d have 30+ doubles in consecutive seasons and would be the 50th Giant to hit at least 30 doubles in a season in the Oracle Park era. The most recent 10 years is an interesting list:
- Rafael Devers, 2026 (36)
- Jung Hoo Lee, 2025 (31)
- Matt Chapman, 2024 (39)
- Mike Yastrzemski, 2022 (31)
- Brandon Crawford, 2021 (30)
- Kevin Pillar, 2019 (37)
- Brandon Belt, 2019 (32)
- Brandon Crawford, 2017 (34)
- Buster Posey, 2017 (34)
- Denard Span, 2017 (31)
The Giants have won just 4 road series all year and they were all before June 18th. And, keep in mind, it’s only been a week, and all that stuff I wrote last week about the young players on the St. Louis side still applies. They’re a dangerous team even if they have a losing record at home in 2026.
Series Overview
Who: San Francisco Giants (62-88) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (74-76)
Where: Oracle Park | San Francisco, California
When: Monday & Tuesday at 4:45pm PT, Wednesday at 10:15am PT
National broadcasts: None
Projected starters
Monday: Landen Roupp (RHP 9-13, 4.00 ERA) vs. Quinn Mathews (LHP 1-3, 4.11 ERA)
Tuesday: Blade Tidwell (RHP 0-2, 4.82 ERA) vs. Andre Pallante (RHP 12-6, 3.45 ERA)
Wednesday: TBD vs. Matthew Liberatore (LHP 5-14, 5.53 ERA)
Prediction time
Christian Koss has slashed .281/.337/.438 over his last 30 games (108 PA) with 4 homers, 3 doubles, and 4 stolen bases. The prediction is that he will have a multi-hit game in this series.
