While the Redbirds are reportedly rebuilding, their cluster of kids hasn’t gotten the memo that they aren’t supposed to be this good yet
By Ryan K Boman | May 9, 2026 | @RYANKBOMAN on X
The St. Louis Cardinals continue to look like contenders, despite being a young team that many did not believe could win this soon. We are kind of continuing this theme right now, as it’s still debatable among St. Louis fans as to whether it’s all for real or just some lucky breaks to start the season.
After an offseason built more around patience than splashy headlines, many expected 2026 to be a transition year. And that’s what it was supposed to be: a season devoted to growth, development, and simply surviving the brutal grind of a mostly futile 2026 season. Instead, the retooled Redbirds have spent the opening weeks looking remarkably composed for a roster filled with kids, playing with a maturity that they’re not supposed to. It’s a coming-of-age story, and the protagonists have had an early growth spurt.
Their success has not come from overwhelming opponents with star power. It has come from the persistence of youth. The precocious Cardinals have become one of the most frustrating lineups in MLB to put away by simply pestering their older opponents into submission. At-bats stretch deep into counts, and opposing starting pitchers sometimes find themselves over 40 pitches within two innings. So even when St. Louis falls behind, the game never seems out of reach because the lineup continues to foul pitches off and extend the game. Then, they capitalize on late-inning mistakes.
If the Cardinals are already winning grind-it-out games this early in the stretch of the campaign, it’s hard to know how good they really are. At least, at this point. But if this trend continues, they become playoff contenders at best, and potential spoilers at worst. Either way, that’s a major success for a team that was predicted to win fewer than 70 games this season. Currently sitting at 23-15 and playing over .600 baseball, the Cards are sure to surpass the prognosticators’ opinions.
That approach has created a noticeable identity. The Cardinals are not panicking when trailing late in games. They simply continue playing clean baseball and trust that opportunities will come. That’s helped them find confidence flowing through the clubhouse. Young teams are supposed to be inconsistent, but this group has shown an unusual calm in tight situations. They never seem to worry about whatever comes next, like a teenager who’s already out after curfew… What do they have to lose?
Whether the Redbirds’ current run is completely sustainable remains a fair question. But lucky teams do not consistently outlast opponents night after night; they also don’t do it for long stretches at a time. That could change, but the team’s philosophy is clearly working and making them as a team on the rise. If this holds form, Cardinals’ fans will simply have to cut the umbilical cord and admit this team is more grown than we thought. These kids look less like an early-season anomaly and more like a team that’s ready for the bright lights of the big time.