The St. Louis Cardinals traded away several notable players before the 2026 MLB trade deadline, but despite their sell-off, they remain within striking distance of the National League playoff picture.
Considering the Cardinals parted ways with important pieces such as Dustin May, JoJo Romero, and Lars Nootbaar, many expected the team to fall out of contention. Instead, St. Louis sits at 59-59 and is only 3½ games behind a Wild Card position. The Arizona Diamondbacks and Philadelphia Phillies currently occupy the second and third Wild Card spots at 63-56. Only the San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins are ahead of the Cardinals among the teams chasing from outside the playoff field.
Over the next three days, the Cardinals will play a series that could end up being very important in the playoff race down the line. St. Louis will kick off a three-game series against the Phillies on Monday night at Busch Stadium.
Here are the hurlers the Cardinals will be rolling with in the series.
Monday — Hunter Dobbins
With Dustin May no longer in the Cardinals’ rotation, Hunter Dobbins has stepped into the fifth starter role, at least for now. Dobbins has appeared in eight games for St. Louis this season, making five starts, and has delivered impressive results. Over 40 innings, he owns a 3.60 ERA and is coming off a strong performance against the New York Yankees on Aug. 4, when he surrendered just two runs across 6⅓ innings.
For the upcoming matchup, the Philadelphia Phillies are expected to counter with Andrew Painter on the mound.
Tuesday — Andre Pallante
Andre Pallante has emerged as one of the Cardinals’ most encouraging stories during the 2026 season. After struggling last year with a 5.31 ERA across 31 starts, Pallante has bounced back impressively this season. He currently owns a 3.63 ERA through 22 starts for St. Louis.
Pallante will take the mound against Philadelphia Phillies starter Cristopher Sánchez, who is in the mix for the National League Cy Young Award.
Wednesday — Kyle Leahy
Another feel-good story for St. Louis. Leahy struggled early on this season and there was at least an argument at the time to move him back to the bullpen. He has turned his season around, though. Now, he’s actually leading the Cardinals’ starting rotation with a 3.45 ERA in 22 starts. On top of this, he has a 99-to-35 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 112 1/3 innings pitched. Leahy has been great and he’ll look to wrap up the series for St. Louis against Phillies star Zack Wheeler.
