Cardinals Changing MLB Insider's Mind Ahead Of Trade Deadline

The St. Louis Cardinals have been one of Major League Baseball's biggest surprises this season.

St. Louis has dropped two straight games after losing against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday night, but still has a 36-30 record. The Cardinals are in second place in the National League Central and are four games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs.

Although the Cardinals have lost two straight games, the perception around the organization has changed. This is clearly shown through the fact that The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal said St. Louis is a team that needs to be taken seriously now.

"Plot Twist?: It might be time to take the Cardinals seriously...By nature, plot twists are hard to identify less than halfway through the show," Rosenthal said. "Remember last year, when the Pirates started the season 9-2? Had a winning record on Aug. 4? They almost had me. (In the end, it was the Detroit Tigers and Kansas City Royals). But this year … man, I’m starting to think it might be the Cardinals. After taking two of three from the (Los Angeles Dodgers) over the weekend, they’re four games back in the NL Central, at 36-29 — the same record as the AL West-leading Houston Astros.

"So, are they for real? Hard to say. Going into last night’s 7-3 loss to the Dodgers, they had scored 298 runs — seventh-best in the league. But everything else has been pretty aggressively average: Defensively, they were tied for 14th with 11 Defensive Runs saved, and their pitchers had allowed 266 runs allowed (also 14th). That rotation could get a boost soon, though, if they can find space for 24-year-old prospect Michael McGreevy, who showed some encouraging signs in his spot start against the Dodgers."