After seemingly regaining their footing in the month of May, the St. Louis Cardinals have slipped back to last place and now once again own the worst record in the National League.
Over the weekend, they were swept in a three-game series by the Pittsburgh Pirates and fell to 25-35 on the season.
They also are now 7.5 games back of first place in the NL Central.
There is certainly a lot of time left in the season, but the team can no longer use the “it’s early” claim to justify their struggles.
In fact, as shared below by Brandon Kiley, only two teams that have started off 25-35 or worse ended up making it to the postseason, meaning that the Cardinals have their work cut out for them.
According to @baseball_ref, there have only been two teams in MLB history to start the season with a record of 25-35 (or worse) that went on to make the playoffs: The 2005 Astros (L WS) & 1981 Royals (split season).
— Brandon Kiley (@BKSportsTalk) June 4, 2023
The 1981 Kansas City Royals reached the postseason due to the season being split into two halves after the player strike.
The 2005 Houston Astros are another example of this.
They began the season 16-31 and were forced to climb out of a major hole.
Ultimately though, the Astros reached the World Series, and even knocked out the Cardinals in the NLCS before being swept by the Chicago White Sox.
It’s certainly possible, but the Cardinals continue digging themselves into a hole that becomes harder to climb out of after each loss.
To make matters worse, they’ll have to deal with the Texas Rangers next, who own the second-best record in all of baseball.
Needless to say, it’s going to take quite the turnaround for St. Louis to pull themselves out of this recent funk and get back on track.
NEXT: Cardinals Add A New Face To Their Roster
