Pirates Face Crucial Series in NL Wild Card Race

The St. Louis Cardinals continue their downturn, losing two of three games to the Cincinnati Reds, marking just three wins in 11 games and just one game above .500, but still 1.5 games back.

One team that is still losing is the Miami Marlins, as the San Diego Padres swept them at loanDepot Park.

The Padres are now .500 again and just two games back, while the Marlins have lost 12 games in a row, two games below .500 and three games back.

It's a big mid-week for most of these teams, who are all playing important series and can bolster their standing in the Wild Card chase.

The Cardinals host the Cubs for a four-game series, the Marlins host the Philadelphia Phillies, who are two games ahead of the Diamondbacks, who then face the Pirates on the road.

Washington is the one team left out and they host the 2025 World Series runners-up in the Toronto Blue Jays, who have had a terrible season and are 48-58.

What Rest of Season Holds for Pirates

The Pirates have had an incredibly tough month of July, facing the likes of the Phillies, Nationals, Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers at home, both on top of the NL East and NL Central, the Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees on the road, both in the AL Wild Card race, and the Cubs.

All of these teams are above .500 and competing for the postseason, but the Pirates have managed an 11-9 record so far.

The Pirates face the Reds and Brewers on the road, each for a four-game series, and still have road series against the Cubs and Marlins, a west coast road trip vs. the Los Angeles Dodgers and Padres, home-and-away series with the Cardinals, plus a home series vs. the resurgent Boston Red Sox.

If the Pirates can keep this record where it's at and then take advantage of the poorer teams they play, they can stay in the Wild Card race and then earn that spot come the end of September.