Cardinals Face Uphill Battle With Grueling Schedule That Will Determine Club's Fate

St. Louis needs to get hot quickly

Jun 25, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of Busch Stadium after tonights game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Atlanta Braves was postponed and will be made up tomorrow as part of a doubleheader. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports / Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals are at a pivotal point in their season where a long enough losing streak could put them well out of playoff contention and things aren't looking so good for the club.

After Monday night's gut-wrenching 6-1 defeat against the National League Central rival Cincinnati Reds, the Cardinals have lost six of their last ten games played and sit 7 1/2 behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in their division.

With only 43 games left to play in 2024 for the Cardinals, they'll need to turn things around quickly and it won't be a walk in the park either with their remaining schedule.

"As if that’s not daunting enough, the Cardinals also have the toughest remaining schedule of any team in the Central, and the second toughest in the NL after the (Colorado) Rockies," The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal wrote Tuesday when discussing St. Louis' path to the playoffs.

After this important three-game series against the Reds is complete, the Cardinals will host the Los Angeles Dodgers, face the Brewers twice and take on the red-hot San Diego Padres, New York Mets, Seattle Mariners, Cincinnati once more, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Guardians and lastly, the San Francisco Giants.

The Padres, Mets, Reds, Pirates and Giants are all fighting for an NL Wild Card spot alongside the Cardinals. If St. Louis can overcome the odds and defeat their league rivals, they'll certainly make the playoffs.

There's a lot at stake if the Cardinals don't make the postseason for a second consecutive year. Luckily, they're only 2 1/2 games behind an NL Wild Card spot, so they're still in the fight. Confidence in the club might be waning but a turnaround can't be ruled out just yet.

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