Alec Burleson (Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports)
The St. Louis Cardinals went 3-3 in their final homestand of the 2025 regular season and remain four games below .500. Alec Burleson hit .476 with a home run and three RBI among 10 hits in the week. Our history feature looks at rare feats during this week in years past, including no-hitters.
Game recaps
Monday, September 15, 2025 – Cardinals 6, Reds 11
The Cardinals fell to the Reds by the score of 11-6 in the first of a three-game set at Busch Stadium.
Starter Matthew Liberatore pitched six innings and gave up three runs, two earned, on four hits, six strikeouts, and one walk.
Chris Roycroft surrendered three runs and recorded just one out in relief of Liberatore. John King secured two outs without allowing a run. Ryan Fernandez yielded one run in ⅓ innings and took the loss. Kyle Leahy allowed four runs in one inning pitched. Gordon Graceffo recorded the final two outs of the ninth.
The Reds took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second inning. The Cardinals immediately tied the game in the home half of the inning. Willson Contreras doubled and scored on a single by Nolan Arenado to tie the game at one apiece.
Cincinnati added two runs in the third to take a 3-1 lead. In the sixth, St. Louis scored three runs to go ahead 4-3.
Brendan Donovan singled. Iván Herrera was hit by a pitch. Alec Burleson doubled to plate Donovan and Herrera. Contreras plated Burleson on a single.
The Reds came back and put up three runs in the top of the seventh to lead 6-4. The Cardinals posted a two-run bottom of the seventh to tie the game once more. Arenado doubled. Thomas Saggese singled. Donovan drove in Arenado on a single. Saggese came home on a single by Herrera to tie the game at six.
The Reds regained the lead 7-6 with one run scored in the eighth and staged a four-run ninth to run up the score to 11-6.
The Cardinals scored six runs on 10 hits. Donovan was 3-for-5 with an RBI. Arenado was 2-for-4 with a double and one RBI. Contreras was 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Burleson doubled and tallied two RBI.
On the bases, Contreras stole his fifth bag of the season. Herrera swiped his eighth base.
On defense, center fielder Victor Scott II made a fielding error.
Tuesday, September 16, 2025 – Cardinals 3, Reds 0
The Cardinals blanked the Reds in a 3-0 game at Busch Stadium on Tuesday.
Starter Michael McGreevy pitched seven scoreless innings, allowed three hits, fanned six and walked three to earn his seventh win.
JoJo Romero relieved McGreevy and threw a scoreless eighth. Riley O’Brien tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Brendan Donovan doubled. Iván Herrera singled. Donovan scored on a sac fly by Nolan Arenado.
St. Louis scored two more runs in the third to increase the lead to 3-0. Alec Burleson singled. Thomas Saggese followed with a two-run home run.
Neither team managed to score in the final six innings.
The offense scored three runs on eight hits. Saggese was 2-for-4 with a home run for two RBI. Burleson was 2-for-4. Pedro Pagés was 2-for-3.
The Cardinals did not record a stolen base and turned two double plays in an errorless performance.
Wednesday, September 17, 2025 – Cardinals 2, Reds 6
The Cardinals lost to the Reds in the final game of the series on Wednesday at Busch Stadium.
Starter Andre Pallante pitched five innings, gave up four runs on six hits, struck out three and walked three. Pallante took the loss.
Jorge Alcalá relieved Pallante and threw a scoreless sixth. Matt Svanson surrendered two runs in the seventh. Ryan Fernandez hurled a scoreless eighth. Gordon Graceffo tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a solo home run by Alec Burleson.
The Reds scored three runs in fourth to go up 3-1.
Cincinnati added a run in the fourth to increase their lead to 4-1. St. Louis responded with a run in the sixth. Lars Nootbaar walked. Iván Herrera reached on a fielder’s choice. Nootbaar scored on a throwing error.
The Reds scored two more runs in the seventh to extend their lead to 6-2.
The offense scored two runs on five hits. Burleson was 2-for-3 with an RBI. The offense was 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.
On the bases, Victor Scott II stole his 33rd base of the season. Burleson was caught stealing third base.
Thursday, September 18, 2025 – Off day
Friday, September 19, 2025 – Cardinals 7, Brewers 1
The Cardinals beat the Brewers in a 7-1 contest at Busch Stadium on Friday. This was the final home series of the season.
Starter Sonny Gray pitched six innings, gave up one run on nine hits and fanned seven to win his 14th game of the season.
Gordon Graceffo threw two scoreless innings in relief of Gray. Ryan Fernandez tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals went up 1-0 in the first inning. Brendan Donovan walked. Iván Herrera walked. Nolan Arenado ground into a force out. Herrera was out at second. Lars Nootbaar singled and Donovan scored.
St. Louis added a run in the second to increase the lead to 2-0. Thomas Saggese walked. Pedro Pagés singled and Saggese advanced to third. Jordan Walker hit into a double play, with Saggese home on the play.
The Brewers answered with a run in the third to cut the lead to 2-1. The Cardinals posted a five-run fifth inning to run up the score to 7-1.
Donovan, Herrera, and Burleson loaded the bags with three straight singles. Arenado doubled to clear the bases and advanced to third on an error on the play.
Saggese plate Arenado on a double. Walker drove in Saggese on a single.
The offense scored seven runs on 14 hits. Walker was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Donovan was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Burleson was 3-for-4. Pagés was 2-for-4. Arenado had three RBI. Saggese scored two runs.
On the bases, Donovan was caught stealing home plate.
Saturday, September 20, 2025 – Cardinals 2, Brewers 3 (10 innings)
The Cardinals fell to the Brewers in an extra innings one-run loss on Saturday.
Starter Miles Mikolas pitched five innings, gave up two runs on seven hits, struck out three and walked two.
Kyle Leahy relieved Mikolas and threw two scoreless innings of relief. Riley O’Brien hurled 1 ⅓ scoreless innings. JoJo Romero surrendered one unearned run in the final 1 ⅔ innings.
The Brewers took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. The Cardinals tied the game with a run in the fourth.
Iván Herrera singled. Alec Burleson singled. Nolan Arenado singled to score Herrera.
St. Louis added a run in the fifth to take the lead 2-1. Pedro Pagés singled. Jordan Walker singled. Victor Scott moved the runners over with a sac bunt. Brendan Donovan plated Pagés on a single.
Milwaukee tied the game in the sixth. Neither team scored again in regulation. In extra innings, the Brewers took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 10th. The Cardinal failed to answer in the home half of the 10th.
The Cardinals scored two runs on nine hits, all singles. Arenado was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Walker was 2-for-3.
Sunday, September 21, 2025 – Cardinals 5, Brewers 1
The Cardinals beat the Brewers in the final game of the series to take the series at Busch Stadium.
Starter Matthew Liberatore pitched five innings, gave up one run on five hits, fanned six and walked one to earn his eighth win.
Matt Svanson relieved Liberatore and threw two scoreless innings of relief. Ryan Fernandez hurled a scoreless eighth. Riley O’Brien tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals went up 2-0 in the third inning. Victor Scott walked. Iván Herrera followed with a two-run home run.
St. Louis added two runs in the fourth to increase the lead to 4-0. Jordan Walker drew a walk. Nolan Gorman walked. José Fermín plated Walker and Gorman on a double.
The Brewers scored their only run in the fifth inning to cut the lead to 4-1. The Cardinals added a final run in the eighth to extend the lead to 5-1. Herrera walked. Alec Burleson singled. Lars Nootbaar moved the runners with a sac bunt. Walker was intentionally walked to load the base. Fermín walked and Herrera scored.
The offense scored five runs on three hits. Fermín had three RBI. Herrera had two RBI and two runs scored.
Big Picture.
The Cardinals finished the week with a record of 3-3. They lost two of three against the Reds at Busch Stadium and won two of three against the Brewers. The Brewers were planning to clinch the NL Central on Sunday, and they did, but not by beating the Cardinals. After the game was over, they clinched when the Cubs lost to the Reds, and thus still celebrated at Busch Stadium, though in the clubhouse and not on the field.
The Cardinals have a record of 76-80 and are in fourth place in the NL Central, where they will likely remain. They are 19 games back of the Brewers, four games back of the third place Reds, and still four games back of the wild card, tied with the Marlins. The team will also likely end the season under .500, as they would have to win 5 of their last six games to hit .500 and all six games to go one game over .500.
The offense was good enough to break even this week. Not a grand endorsement, but it could be worse, and has been in past weeks. The top performers for the week by OPS are Willson Contreras (1.667 in 3 ABs, and now shut down for the season), Alec Burleson (1.322), José Fermín (1.167), Brendan Donovan (.921), and Pedro Pagés (.910).
At the bottom are Lars Nootbaar (.329), Victor Scott (.277), Jimmy Crooks (.166), Nolan Gorman (.077), Nathan Church (.000 in 3 ABs), and Yohel Pozo (.000 in 1 AB).
The starting pitching for the week was good, apart from Andre Pallante. He was the only pitcher with an ERA under 4.00 with an ERA of 7.20. Michael McGreevy had an ERA of 0.00 for the second week in a row. Matthew Liberatore (2.45), Sonny Gray (1.50), and Miles Mikolas (3.60) all pitched well.
The five starters each have one more start, except for McGreevy, who will pitch twice.
The bullpen was okay, but hiccups from Kyle Leahy (12.00) and Chris Roycroft (81.00) marred the week.
The final week of the season will be a series against the Giants at Oracle Park, and a series with the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Both teams have struggled in these final weeks of the season. The Cubs have already clinched a Wild Card spot, but the Giants are 3 games back and still in the hunt, though their chances are fading.
NL Central Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB | WCGB |
| Milwaukee – y | 95 | 61 | 0.609 | — | — |
| Chicago – x | 88 | 68 | 0.564 | 7 | — |
| Cincinnati | 80 | 76 | 0.513 | 15 | — |
| St. Louis | 76 | 80 | 0.487 | 19 | 4 |
| Pittsburgh | 67 | 89 | 0.429 | 28 | 13 |
y – Clinched Division
x – Clinched Playoff Berth
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade or acquisition rumors to report.
Transactions
- 9/15 – The Cardinals optioned 2B José Fermín to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 9/15 – The Cardinals activated 3B Nolan Arenado from the 10-day injured list.
- 9/17 – The Cardinals placed 1B Willson Contreras on the 10-day injured list. Right shoulder strain.
- 9/17 – The Cardinals recalled 2B José Fermín from the Memphis Redbirds.
Injury Report
- LHP Zack Thompson (left lat strain) was transferred to the 60-day injured list on April 7. Latest report on Thompson as of September 3 is that he is still at the Cardinals’ spring training facility in Jupiter but has been shut down from throwing. There is no timetable for when he will return to pitching.
- 3B Nolan Arenado was activated from the 10-day injured list.
- SS Masyn Winn (right knee torn meniscus) was placed on the 10-day injured list on September 13. Winn has been shut down for the remainder of the season and will have surgery in the offseason. A normal offseason is expected and Winn will return for Spring Training in 2026.
- 1B Willson Contreras was placed on the 10-day injured list on September 17, retroactive to September 16. Contreras is suffering from a right shoulder strain and has been shut down for the season.
- DH Iván Herrera will have offseason surgery to remove loose bodies in his right elbow. Herrera has not been placed on the injured list and is continuing to play
Looking Ahead
The Brewers series ended on Sunday, to conclude the Cardinals’ home season. The Cardinals were 44-37 at home this season.
The team ends the regular season starting with a series in San Francisco with the Giants beginning Monday, September 22. Michael McGreevy will get the Monday start, followed by Andre Pallante on Tuesday, and Sonny Gray on Wednesday.
The season ends in Chicago for the final regular season series against the Cubs. The regular season ends on Sunday, September 28.
The postseason begins with the Wild Card Series on Tuesday, September 30. The Cardinals are currently 5 games back of a Wild Card slot, but the likelihood of a postseason berth is virtually nil as there are only six games left in the season with five teams ahead of them (the Marlins are currently tied with the Cardinals in being five games back).
Blast from the Past
This week’s Blast from the Past returns to a recurring series featuring rare feats performed by Cardinals players in past years in the history of the franchise. This series began last season and continues this week for another installment. For the current period of September 15 through September 22, we will highlight some rare feats from the past.
A rare feat has been defined as one of the following: (1) a pitcher or pitchers throwing a no-hitter; (2) A batter hitting for the cycle, which is hitting at least one single, one double, one triple, and one home run in a single game; (3) A batter recording six hits in one game; (4) a player, either a position player or a pitcher, hitting a home run in their first major league at bat; and (5) a player hitting three or more home runs in a single game.
During the period September 15 through 21, the following rare feats are featured. For each rare feat, the type of feat, the date it occurred, and some details of each occurrence are listed below.
September 18, 1968 – On this date, Cardinals RHP Ray Washburn threw a no-hitter in a 2-0 win over the San Francisco Giants at Candlestick Park.
Washburn pitched for the Cardinals from 1961-1969. The no-hitter was the first from a Cardinal since Lou Warnecke did it in 1941.
Washburn struck out eight but walked five batters. The Giants’ Gaylord Perry had just thrown a no-hitter the day before against the Cardinals with Bob Gibson pitching. It was the first time in major league history that back-to-back no-hitters were pitched in the same series.
September 21, 1934 – On this date, in the second game of a doubleheader against the Brooklyn Dodgers, Cardinals’ pitcher Paul “Daffy” Dean, brother of Dizzy Dean, pitched a no-hitter in a 3-0 win over the Dodgers at Ebbets Field. It was Dean’s rookie season.
Dean struck out six and walked one for a game score of 92. Dean’s brother Dizzy was quoted as saying “If I’da known Paul was gonna pitch a no-hitter, I’da pitched me one too”.
September 15, 1991 – On this date, Cardinals CF Ray Lankford hit for the cycle in a 7-2 win over the Mets at Busch Stadium II.
Lankford went 4-for-4 with an RBI and four runs scored. Lankford’s first hit was a double to LF in the first inning. He scored on a double by Todd Zeile. He singled to LF in the third and scored on a sac fly by Zeile.
In the fifth, Lankford tripled to RF and scored on a double by Ozzie Smith. He hit a solo home run in the seventh.
September 16, 1924 – On this date, Cardinals’ 1B Jim Bottomley had six hits in a 17-3 rout of the Brooklyn Robins at Ebbets Field.
Bottomley went 6-for-6 with 12 RBI and three runs scored. The six hits were as follows: (1) an RBI single to RF in the first inning that scored two runs; (2) an RBI double to RF in the second inning that scored one run; (3) A grand slam in the fourth inning; (4) a two run home run in the sixth; (5) an RBI single in the seventh that scored two; and (6) an RBI single in the ninth that scored one.
September 20, 1928 – On this date, in the first game of a doubleheader against the New York Giants, Cardinals’ outfielder George Harper hit three home runs in one game.
The Cardinals beat the Giants 8-5 at the Polo Grounds. Harper went 3-for-4 with five RBI and three runs scored.
Harper hit the first home run, a solo shot, in the second inning. In the sixth, Harper hit a three-run long ball that scored Frankie Frisch and Jim Bottomley.
Harper hit a second solo home run in the eighth. This was the only season Harper played for the Cardinals.
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