photo: Ivan Herrera (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
On the road, the St. Louis Cardinals went 3-3 for the week as the bullpen stumbled in three one-run defeats. Ivan Herrera led the offense with a 1.396 OPS for the period. Our history feature revisits MLB debuts during this past week in team history.
Game Recaps
Monday, June 8, 2026 – Off day
Tuesday, June 9, 2026 – Cardinals 7 at Mets 0
The St. Louis Cardinals blanked the New York Mets by a 7-0 score at Citi Field on Tuesday. Starter Dustin May pitched six scoreless innings, allowed four hits, walked one and fanned six to earn his fourth win.
Justin Bruihl relieved May and threw two scoreless innings. Matt Svanson tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals went up 4-0 in the third inning. Nolan Gorman walked. Nathan Church doubled. JJ Wetherholt singled to score Gorman and Church. Iván Herrera was hit by a pitch. Jordan Walker doubled to plate Wetherholt. Herrera came home on a ground out by Lars Nootbaar.
St. Louis added two runs in the fifth on a two-run home run by Alec Burleson. They made it 7-0 in the seventh as Herrera doubled and was plated on a double by Burleson.
The Cardinals scored seven runs on 10 hits. Burleson was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Herrera was 3-for-5 with three runs scored. Church was 3-for-4. Wetherholt drove in two.
Jimmy Crooks had a passed ball.
Wednesday, June 10, 2026 – Cardinals 9 at Mets 2
The Cardinals defeated the Mets by the score of 9-2 on Wednesday at Citi Field. Starter Andre Pallante pitched six innings, gave up two runs on three hits, walked two and fanned five to earn his seventh win.
Matt Svanson relieved Pallante and threw two scoreless innings. JoJo Romero tossed a scoreless ninth.
The Cardinals went ahead 2-0 in the first inning. JJ Wetherholt singled. Iván Herrera walked. Jordan Walker plated Wetherholt on a single. Lars Nootbaar walked. Herrera came home on a force out by Masyn Winn.
St. Louis added two runs in the third to lead 4-0. Winn walked and Nelson Velázquez followed with a two-run home run.
The Cardinals extended their lead to 7-0 in the fourth. Wetherholt singled. Herrera walked. Walker hit a three-run home run.
The Mets scored twice in the home fourth.
St. Louis answered with a run in the fifth to increase the lead to 8-2. Winn singled but was out at second on a force out by Nathan Church. Church advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on a single by José Fermín.
The Cardinals added a final run in the ninth on a solo home run by Alec Burleson.
The offense scored nine runs on 11 hits. Walker was 2-for-5 with four RBI. Wetherholt was 3-for-5 with two runs scored. Velázquez had two RBI. Herrera scored two runs.
Winn stole his sixth base of the season.
Thursday, June 11, 2026 – Cardinals 4 at Mets 5
The Cardinals were edged by the Mets by a 5-4 score at Citi Field on Thursday. Spot starter Hunter Dobbins pitched 4 1/3 innings, gave up three runs on seven hits and fanned five.
Justin Bruihl relieved Dobbins and surrendered one run in 1/3 of an inning. George Soriano threw 1 1/3 scoreless innings. JoJo Romero yielded one run in 1 1/3 innings and took the loss. Gordon Graceffo tossed the final scoreless 2/3 of an inning.
The Cardinals took the lead in the top of the first inning on a solo home run by Alec Burleson. The Mets answered with three runs in the home first.
St. Louis regained the lead 4-3 with a three-run second inning. Lars Nootbaar thumped a solo home run. Masyn Winn doubled and Jimmy Crooks followed with a two-run home run.
New York tied the game in the fifth and went ahead 5-4 in the seventh.
The Cardinals scored four runs on seven hits. Nootbaar was 2-for-4 with an RBI. Crooks had two RBI.
Friday, June 12, 2026 – Cardinals 8 at Twins 9
The Cardinals took a one run loss in the first of a three-game series against the Twins at Target Field on Friday. Starter Kyle Leahy pitched five innings, gave up four runs on eight hits, walked one and fanned five.
George Soriano relieved Leahy and threw a scoreless sixth. Gordon Graceffo surrendered two runs in 2/3 of an inning. Ryne Stanek relinquished three runs in the final 1 1/3 innings and took the loss.
The Cardinals took a quick lead in the top of the first on a solo home run by Alec Burleson. The Twins answered with one run in the bottom of the inning to tie the game.
St. Louis added two runs in the second to take the lead 3-1. Lars Nootbaar and Masyn Winn singled. Blaze Jordan singled to score Nootbaar. JJ Wetherholt plated Winn on a single.
Minnesota scored one run in the fifth and two in the sixth to go ahead 4-3.
In the top of the seventh, the Cardinals plated four runs to retake the lead at 7-4. Jimmy Crooks and JJ Wetherholt walked. Iván Herrera singled. Burleson walked to force in a run. Jordan Walker cleared the bases with a double.
The Twins responded with three runs in the home seventh to re-tie the game at 7-7. In the top of the eighth, the Cardinals broke the tie with a run to make it 8-7. Crooks singled and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Bryan Torres pinch ran. Blaze Jordan singled. José Fermín singled to score Torres.
The Twins plated two runs against Stanek in the home eighth to take the lead 9-8 and win the game.
The Cardinals scored eight runs on 12 hits. Wetherholt and Jordan were both 2-for-4 with an RBI. Herrera was 2-for-5. Burleson drove in two and scored two runs. Walker had three RBI.
Herrera stole his third base of the season. Nootbaar had an outfield assist at third base.
Saturday, June 13, 2026 – Cardinals 9 at Twins 6
The Cardinals beat the Twins in the second game of the series by a 9-6 score on Saturday. Starter Matthew Liberatore pitched 4 1/3 innings, gave up four runs on five hits, walked one and fanned four.
Matt Svanson relieved Liberatore and threw 1 2/3 scoreless innings to earn the win. Ryne Stanek hurled a scoreless seventh. Chris Roycroft surrendered one run in 1/3 of an inning. JoJo Romero pitched 2/3 of a scoreless inning. Riley O’Brien allowed one run in the ninth.
The Cardinals opened scoring in the top of the first inning on a two-run home run by Iván Herrera. They added two runs in the second. Blaze Jordan tripled and scored on a double by Pedro Pagés. Pagés later came home on a sac fly by Masyn Winn.
The Twins scored two runs in the fourth and two in the fifth to tie the game. In the seventh, St. Louis put up five runs to go ahead 9-4. Herrera and Jordan Walker hit back to back solo home runs. Lars Nootbaar singled. Alec Burleson singled. Jordan blasted a three-run home run.
Minnesota scored one run in the eighth and one in the ninth for the final score of 9-6.
St. Louis’ offense scored nine runs on 13 hits. Herrera was 2-for-3 with three RBI and two runs scored. Jordan was 2-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored. Pagés was 3-for-4 with an RBI.
Sunday, June 14, 2026 – Cardinals 4 at Twins 5
The Cardinals fell to the Twins in the finale of the three-game weekend series. Starter Michael McGreevy pitched six innings, gave up two runs on seven hits, walked two and struck out two.
JoJo Romero relieved McGreevy and surrendered two runs in 1/3 of an inning. George Soriano yielded one run in 1 2/3 innings and took the loss.
The Cardinals took the lead in the top of the fourth inning on a solo home run by Alec Burleson. The Twins answered with two runs in the home half of the inning to go ahead 2-1.
In the sixth, St. Louis scored two runs on a home run by JJ Wetherholt to regain the lead 3-2. They added a fourth run in the top of the seventh to extend the lead to 4-2. José Fermín and Nathan Church singled. Wetherholt singled to plate Fermín.
Minnesota responded with two runs in the home seventh to tie the game. The Twins took the lead for good at 5-4 in the eighth.
St. Louis’ offense scored four runs on seven hits. Wetherholt was 2-for-5 with three RBI. Nathan Church was 2-for-3.
Iván Herrera stole his fourth base of the season.
The Big Picture
The Cardinals went 3-3 on the week, taking two of three from the Mets, and losing two of three at the Twins. The team remains in second place in the NL Central, five games back of the Brewers, and 2.5 games ahead of the Cubs.
The Cards currently hold the first NL Wild Card spot, a game ahead of the Phillies, and 1.5 games ahead of the Padres, the team the Cardinals begin a series with on Monday in St. Louis. It is way too early for any of the current standings to matter a lot, however.
What does matter is that the Cardinals were not considered to be a playoff caliber team when the season started. Moreover, the consensus is that while the offense is playing well and can continue to do so, the pitching is not good enough to sustain the run they are on. It is hard to argue with that assessment.
Speaking of the offense, the top performers for the week by OPS were Pedro Pagés (2.000 in 4 ABs), Iván Herrera (1.396), Blaze Jordan (1.250), and Alec Burleson (1.138). At the bottom are Nolan Gorman (.286) and Masyn Winn (.398).
Gorman was optioned to Memphis and was replaced on the roster by Blaze Jordan. Jordan has started with a bang, which is not uncommon. Whether he can sustain that level of performance is the question mark. Gorman was given considerable time to show he could perform at an acceptable level and he did not. His main issue is a high strikeout rate, something which has been an issue with him for some time. The hope is that the coaching staff in the minor leagues can help him improve in that area.
For the pitching, Dustin May, Michael McGreevy, and Andre Pallante all had ERAs under 4.00 for the week. Kyle Leahy (7.20) has not been able to sustain a short spurt of success and Matthew Liberatore (8.31) has struggled over the last few starts.
While the starting pitching situation is not the best, the bullpen has been the consistent area of concern since the season started. Following a short period of improvement in recent weeks, the bullpen has returned to its previous level of ineffectiveness, a regression to the mean, if you will.
While the rotation has been able to keep the offense in the game for the most part, it is the bullpen’s inability to hold on to a lead that has been the predominant obstacle to the team’s success. The offense cannot sustain a playoff run by itself over the long term, no matter how good it may be.
The Cardinals return to St. Louis for a three-game series with the Padres, then leave again to play the Royals in Kansas City to end the week.
Stay tuned as the season progresses.
NL Central Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct | GB |
| Milwaukee | 43 | 26 | 0.623 | |
| St. Louis | 38 | 31 | 0.551 | 5 |
| Chicago | 37 | 35 | 0.514 | 7.5 |
| Pittsburgh | 36 | 36 | 0.500 | 8.5 |
| Cincinnati | 33 | 37 | 0.471 | 10.5 |
Trade and Acquisition Rumors
There are no trade or acquisition rumors to report.
Transactions
- 6/8 The Cardinals optioned CF Victor Scott to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/9 The Cardinals activated LF Natan Church from the 10-day injured list.
- 6/12 The Cardinals selected the contract of 1B/3B Blaze Jordan from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/12 The Cardinals optioned 3B Nolan Gorman to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/12 The Cardinals recalled RHP Chris Roycroft from the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/12 The Cardinals optioned RHP Hunter Dobbins to the Memphis Redbirds.
- 6/12 The Cardinals moved 3B Ramón Urías to the 60-day injured list. Lateral elbow epicondylitis.
Injury Report
- 3B Ramón Urías was placed on the 60-day injured list on June 12. He has elbow lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow) in both elbows.
- LF Nathan Church was activated from the 10-day injured list.
- RHP Ryan Fernandez was placed on the 15-day injured list on June 5 with low back pain. Fernandez has received an injection.
Looking Ahead
Following the Twins series, the Cardinals briefly return home for three games with the Padres through Wednesday, June 17. They then travel across the state to face the Royals in three games on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday.
The last homestand of June begins on Monday, June 22 with four games against the Arizona Diamondbacks, followed by a weekend set with the Marlins.
The Cardinals go on the road to play the Braves in a three-game series beginning Tuesday, June 30. The road trip ends in Chicago at Wrigley Field for a weekend set with the Cubs.
The team returns home for a seven-game homestand before the All-Star break. They play four with the Brewers, followed by a weekend series with the Braves.
Blast from the Past
Several debuts of Cardinals minor league players on the major league team have occurred in recent weeks. The most recent is 1B/3B Blaze Jordan, who was acquired in a trade with the Boston Red Sox at the 2025 deadline for pitcher Steven Matz.
Prior to Jordan’s debut, LHP Brycen Mautz and utility player Bryan Torres debuted, with more likely to come.
This week’s Blast from the Past brings back a topic from the previous year which chronicled the major league debuts of notable Cardinal players from the past and present during a relevant period. For this installment, we look at major league debuts of Cardinals from June 8 through June 14 in past years.
The following is a list of players who made their major league debuts during the period noted, with the date of the debut and how that player performed in his debut game, or subsequent games when the player had his first hit, or first strikeout in the case of a pitcher.
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Skip Schiumaker (St. Louis Cardinals) Skip Schumaker – Schumaker debuted on June 8, 2005, in a 4-0 loss to the Boston Red Sox at Busch Stadium II. Schumaker pinch hit for pitcher Chris Carpenter in the bottom of the sixth and struck out swinging. His next game was on June 13 against the Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre. Schumaker started in center field, hit ninth and went 0-for-3. He did not get his first hit until his sixth game, on August 12. In a 4-1 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field, Schumaker’s pinch hit RBI single in the ninth inning generated St. Louis’ only run of the game. Skip is currently the manager of the Texas Rangers.
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Tommy Edman (Jasen Vinlove/Imagn) Tommy Edman – Edman debuted on June 8, 2019, in a 9-4 loss to the Cubs at Wrigley Field. Edman pinch hit for Ryan Helsley in the ninth inning and struck out swinging. Edman’s first hit occurred on June 14 in a 9-5 win over the Mets at Citi Field. Edman started the game at second base, hit eighth and doubled to center field in the top of the third inning. In 2026, Edman has not yet played for the Dodgers while recovering from an injury.
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Joe Kelly (USA TODAY Sports Images) Joe Kelly – Kelly, a right-handed pitcher, debuted as a starter on June 10, 2012, in a 4-1 loss to Cleveland at Busch Stadium III. Kelly pitched five innings, gave up one run on seven hits, walked one and fanned four. His first strikeout victim was Carlos Santana in the first inning. It was a strikeout swinging. After a long stint with the Dodgers, Kelly is now retired as a player.
- Andre Granillo – Granillo, a relief pitcher, made his debut on June 12, 2025, in a 6-0 loss the Brewers at American Family Field. Granillo pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings. Granillo struck out his first batter a week later in the second game of a doubleheader on June 19 against the Chicago White Sox, an 8-6 win at Guaranteed Rate Field. He appeared in the 10th inning in relief of JoJo Romero and struck out the final batter he faced, Austin Slater. Granillo was traded to the Washington Nationals in early 2026 for George Soriano.
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