Chicago Cubs @ St. Louis Cardinals – Series Preview (May 24-26): Overview, Game and Broadcast Info, Starting Pitchers, W2W4
The Cubs (27-24) just finished a 2-5 homestand against the Braves and Pirates in which they batted just .148 as a team and scored a total of 16 runs. This despite the fact that Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson have returned to give Chicago a fully healthy lineup for the first time since early April. Now they head out on the road for three games with the rival Cardinals.
St. Louis (23-26) stumbled badly out of the gate in 2024 beginning the season with a 15-24 record. Of course, the Cards are never going to go away that easily and they have won eight out of their last 10 to get right back in the race.
Offense has been a big problem for the Redbirds with a not-so-nice .669 OPS as a team, 23rd in MLB. Paul Goldschmidt has struggled mightily and had a 0-for-32 stretch at the start of this month. Former Cub Willson Contreras was off to a great start before his arm was broken by a backswing while he was catching.
Shortstop Masyn Winn has been a standout on defense and with the bat so far. Burly outfielder Alec Burleson has been a good hitter and has provided some power through the first month and a half. Nolan Arenado has been pretty quiet but is still lurking in the middle of the order.
Cardinals pitching has not been outstanding either with a 4.25 team ERA, which is good enough for just 21st in baseball. The starting rotation has had even more issues with a 4.56 ERA. Sonny Gray has been excellent since returning from an injury to begin the season and Lance Lynn has had a bounce-back year after struggling badly for the White Sox in 2023.
Ryan Helsley has been lights out as the St. Louis closer with 15 saves and a 1.23 ERA in 22 innings. Overall, the bullpen has been the strongest part of the team in the early part of the season.
The Cubs are facing the Cardinals at the wrong time and are in desperate need of something to wake up a completely stagnated offense that has gone five games without a home run. Despite their recent hot stretch, St. Louis has weak pitching and Chicago needs to get something going with the bats. Let’s see if something can finally break the dam and give the team some life.
Game Time and Broadcast Info
- Friday, May 24 at 7:15pm CT on MLB Network (out of market only) and Marquee.
- Saturday, May 25 at 6:15pm CT on FOX.
- Sunday, May 26 at 6:10pm CT on ESPN.
Starting Pitchers
| Date | Pitcher | Age | T | ERA | W/L | FIP | K/BB |
| 5/24 | Shōta Imanaga | 30 | L | 0.84 | 5-0 | 2.20 | 6.44 |
| Miles Mikolas | 35 | R | 5.77 | 3-5 | 4.64 | 3.55 | |
| 5/25 | Jameson Taillon | 32 | R | 2.20 | 3-2 | 4.69 | 2.20 |
| Matthew Liberatore | 24 | L | 5.40 | 1–2 | 4.33 | 1.82 | |
| 5/26 | TBA | ||||||
| Sonny Gray | 34 | R | 2.87 | 6-2 | 2.98 | 5.90 |
What to Watch For
- Ian Happ has doubled in three consecutive games, a good sign after he has struggled to generate any power this season.
- Swanson had four hits in his first series back and was hitting the ball hard.
- Michael Busch is hitting just .200 in May with just one home run after hitting six in April.
- Héctor Neris has settled down and has allowed just one run in his last 10 appearances.
