Feb 26, 2021; Jupiter, Florida, USA; A general view of the St. Louis Cardinals logo on the stadium at Roger Dean Stadium during spring training workouts. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

Cardinals Insider Highlights 'Grim Realities' Of 2025 Season

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Curt Bishop | Last updated Sep 16, 2025 4:00 PM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals continue to struggle. Somehow, they remain mathematically alive in the National League Wild Card race, but they are five games below the .500 mark with 11 games to go, and with such little time, it's unlikely they'll make up their 4 1/2-game deficit, especially with four teams ahead of them for just the last Wild Card spot. An 11-6 loss to the Cincinnati Reds spoiled any momentum built from Sunday's win in Milwaukee.

The bullpen cost them on Monday. Several high-leverage arms were unavailable after being used frequently in Milwaukee, and the Cardinals were hoping to avoid going to Kyle Leahy.

Unfortunately, they were unable to avoid that, and Leahy was touched for four runs. In her recent column in The Athletic, Cardinals insider Katie Woo pointed out just how bad things are for the Cardinals in terms of pitching.

Cardinals Writer Points Out Pitching Struggles

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"Becoming overly reliant on Leahy because Marmol’s second-tier options have been ineffective is not conducive to the player’s or the team’s success," Woo wrote.

"But that’s where the Cardinals stand as the organization continues to face the grim realities of the lack of pitching depth throughout their system. The team must continue using its current options — both in the rotation and relief — because those are the only options it has. Balancing youthfulness and inexperience with development at the big-league level is not an easy task, and both Marmol and pitching coach Dusty Blake have been patient in that regard. But at some point, execution and results must follow."

Things aren't looking good for the Cardinals. One of their main problems is their lack of pitching depth within the farm system. They can't afford to rush Liam Doyle to the Major Leagues, but they can add young pitching via trades this offseason. That is their biggest need, and it may take trading away some popular players like Brendan Donovan, Alec Burleson, and even potentially Lars Nootbaar.

The starting rotation and bullpen are incredibly thin, especially after so many injuries and the trades of Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz at the deadline. But it will be interesting to see how Chaim Bloom goes about adding pitching for St. Louis this coming offseason.

They can't afford to have another quiet winter like they did leading up to 2025.

This article first appeared on St. Louis Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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