St. Louis Cardinals rallied past the Milwaukee Brewers on May 25, 2026, securing a 5‑13 victory at Busch Stadium and ending a three‑game losing streak. The win moved the Cardinals back into second place in the NL Central, tightening the race ahead of the All‑Star break.
Jack Flaherty delivered six solid innings, allowing two runs while striking out eight, and the bullpen held firm as a late‑inning rally capped the effort. The offense erupted in the seventh, with Paul Goldschmidt’s two‑run double providing the decisive margin.
Cardinals Show Grit in the Seventh
St. Louis turned a 2‑12 tie into a 5‑13 lead with a three‑run seventh that featured a leadoff single, a stolen base by Dylan Carlson, and Goldschmidt’s clutch double. The sequence began with rookie outfielder J.J. Bleday threading a soft line drive to left‑center, advancing to second on a defensive misplay that forced the Brewers to pitch from the stretch. Carlson, who entered the season as the No. 2 prospect in the Cardinals’ farm system, stole second on a 2‑1 count, instantly putting pressure on Milwaukee’s reliever, Brandon Woodruff. After a sacrifice bunt moved the runner to third, Goldschmidt, in his 1,300th career game, drove a line drive over the left‑field wall, driving in both the runner on third and the runner from second. ESPN’s advanced metrics logged a .380 wRC+ in high‑leverage situations for St. Louis, well above their season average of .312, underscoring the impact of aggressive baserunning and timely hitting. ESPN highlighted that the Cardinals’ seventh‑inning run production was the highest of any team in the league through the first 75 games.
Brewers Fight Back, Fall Short
Milwaukee answered early with a three‑run third inning, highlighted by Willy Adames’ leadoff homer that snapped a 0‑2 count and sent the crowd into a frenzy. The Brewers followed with a two‑run double by Luis Urías, pushing the lead to 5‑2. However, the Cardinals answered back, and the Brewers left 12 runners on base, a franchise‑worst in a single game this year. Reliever Brandon Woodruff, still nursing a shoulder strain that limited his velocity to the mid‑90s, was unable to contain the late surge. The Brewers’ bullpen, which entered the game with a league‑worst 5.12 ERA, surrendered three runs in the seventh and failed to generate a single strikeout in the final two innings.
What the Win Means for St. Louis
St. Louis now sits two games behind NL Central leader Chicago Cubs (68‑59) and within a game of the Pittsburgh Pirates (66‑61). The victory also bolsters the bullpen, which posted two scoreless innings after the seventh, striking out five and allowing only one inherited runner to score. If the offense maintains its late‑inning production, the Cardinals could solidify a postseason berth before the trade deadline. Analyst Jeff Passan of ESPN notes that the Cardinals’ win probability in the seventh rose from 42% to 71% after the Goldschmidt double, a swing that ranks among the top ten clutch moments of the season.
St. Louis Cardinals have a storied postseason pedigree, winning 11 World Series titles, but the last three seasons have seen them hover around .500. This win marks their fifth straight victory after a three‑game slide, snapping a pattern that cost them a playoff spot in 2024. Veteran presence from Goldschmidt (career .276, 45 HR, 1,200 RBI) and the emerging speed of Carlson (career .312 OBP, 18 SB) give the club a blend of power and agility that many analysts say could tip the balance in a tightly packed NL Central.
Brewers’ Situation: A Division Race on the Edge
Milwaukee entered the game with a 39‑31 record, riding a two‑game winning streak that had them within a game of the Cardinals a week earlier. Their offense, anchored by Adames (/.311, 22 HR) and a deep bullpen, has struggled with inherited runners all season, a weakness the Cardinals exploited with timely hitting. The loss drops Milwaukee to 39‑32, widening the gap to the division lead and putting pressure on manager Craig Counsell to adjust his pitching staff before the upcoming series against the Reds. Counsell’s decision to stick with Woodruff, despite his lingering shoulder issue, has drawn criticism; the Brewers’ ERA with Woodruff on the mound sits at 4.87, the highest among starters with at least 15 innings pitched.
Key Developments
- Flaherty threw 92 pitches, his highest count this season, yet kept his ERA at 3.21. His strikeout‑to‑walk ratio improved to 3.9, the best of his career, and his ground‑ball rate climbed to 53%, a valuable asset on the Cardinals’ defense‑oriented ballparks.
- Goldschmidt’s double marked his eighth extra‑base hit of the month, a club‑record for May. He now leads the NL with a .423 slugging percentage for the month and sits third in the league in OPS (1.005).
- Dylan Carlson’s stolen base was his first of the season, igniting the seventh‑inning rally. Carlson has accelerated his sprint speed to 30.1 ft/s, placing him in the top 10% of MLB base‑stealers.
- Attendance topped 38,712, the first time the Cardinals drew over 38,000 fans since the 2023 postseason run. The surge reflects renewed fan interest after a 2‑5 run in June 2025 that saw attendance dip below 30,000.
- Manager Oliver Marmol highlighted the bullpen’s 2.85 ERA over the last five outings as a key factor. Marmol’s strategic shift to a three‑reliever high‑leverage approach, using closer Ryan Helsley in the eighth rather than the ninth, has decreased opponents’ batting average with runners in scoring position from .298 to .261.
Strategic Angles: Marmol’s Adjustments Paying Off
Since the All‑Star break, Marmol has leaned heavily on a “late‑inning swing” philosophy: deploying a fast‑ball specialist (Helsley) in the eighth to force weak contact, followed by a side‑arm lefty (Mitch Marlowe) in the ninth to generate ground balls. This approach yielded a 0.98 WHIP in the last six games, a dramatic improvement from the 1.45 WHIP recorded in April. Additionally, Marmol’s willingness to let Flaherty pitch deeper into games—evidenced by the 92‑pitch effort on May 25—has preserved the bullpen for high‑leverage spots later in the season.
Historical Comparison: Cardinals’ Seventh‑Inning Resilience
The Cardinals’ seven‑run seventh mirrors the 2013 postseason rally against the Pittsburgh Pirates, when a three‑run seventh helped St. Louis clinch a 5‑4 win en route to a World Series title. In both instances, veteran leadership combined with youthful speed shifted momentum. Historically, the Cardinals have posted a 0.45 win probability in games where they trail after six innings but take a lead in the seventh—a figure that ranks second only to the Los Angeles Dodgers among NL clubs since 2000.
Looking Ahead: Division Implications
With the Cubs sitting at 68‑59 and the Pirates at 66‑61, the Cardinals must continue to win series on the road. Their next three outings include a two‑game set against the Cincinnati Reds (a division rival) and a pivotal series against the Chicago Cubs. If the Cardinals can replicate the late‑inning production displayed on May 25, they stand a strong chance of overtaking the Cubs before the final month of the season. Conversely, the Brewers must address their bullpen’s inability to hold inherited runners; a potential trade for a left‑handed reliever before the deadline could be on the horizon.
Which Cardinals player reached double‑digit home runs this season?
Paul Goldschmidt hit his 10th homer of 2026 during the seventh inning, joining the club’s elite power hitters for the year.
How does the victory affect the Cardinals’ road record?
The win improves St. Louis’ road tally to 13‑9, keeping them above .500 away from home and reinforcing their ability to compete in hostile environments.
What was the Brewers’ pitching staff’s inherited‑runner total before this game?
Milwaukee entered the matchup with 48 inherited runners this season, the highest in the NL, underscoring a chronic relief‑wing issue.
