The St. Louis Cardinals still have a lot of work to do in order to get up to the level of contenders in the National League, including the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers, who are currently duking it out in the National League Championship Series.
The Cardinals took a positive step forward in 2026, but they’re not yet at the level of the Dodgers and the Brewers. From a team-building standpoint, the Cardinals are likely to be closer to the Brewers, than the Dodgers, when they do eventually get back to contention. The Dodgers have a seemingly endless wallet and have found their success by bringing in big-name star after big-name star. But there are things to learn from both. For example, the Cardinals need to determine their core to build around and then supplement the roster with a few veterans who have been around the block. It is important to note that Los Angeles is also among the best teams in baseball in the scouting department. The reason why the Dodgers have been able to trade for stars is because of the fact that their farm system is also typically near the top of the league.
The Brewers are all about development. The vast majority of the team is homegrown and developed by Milwaukee to the point of making massive impacts in the majors. But there are also veterans on the roster, like Christian Yelich and William Contreras. Plus, the Brewers actually acquired Dustin May and JoJo Romero from the Cardinals before the trade deadline and both have had a positive impact in the playoffs so far.
For the Cardinals to actually get back to contention, they need to continue to develop — and retain — their homegrown talent and determine who the core pieces are. The likely options are JJ Wetherholt, Jordan Walker and arguably Alec Burleson. Plus, guys like Masyn Winn, Leo Bernal and Joshua Baez could easily be in that mix as well. The entire team is young. If the Cardinals play their cards right, they should just get better. But that’s also an idea that’s contingent on development, which both the Brewers and Dodgers are great at. Chaim Bloom has shown throughout his career that he is as well.
In 2027, we’re going to see more top prospects start to make the jump to the big leagues, like we did in 2026. Guys like Rainiel Rodriguez, Liam Doyle, Tanner Franklin, Jurrangelo Cijntje and Jesus Baez and Tekoah Roby come to mind as prospects to watch. This adds to the idea of solidifying the core. These guys, and more, could put themselves in that conversation. The second the Cardinals feel as though they know who their core guys are moving forward, then it’s time to add veterans.
It is extremely difficult to win a World Series title in general. It’s even more so if you’re rolling with one of the youngest rosters in the game without veterans around to help show the path. The Dodgers have the oldest roster in baseball with an average age of 30.7 years old. The Brewers were ninth in the league in 2026 at 27.5 years old. The Cardinals had the second-youngest roster with an average age of 26.2 years old. The Cardinals and Brewers may not sound very different on paper, but, again Milwaukee has guys like Yelich and Contreras. The Cardinals do not. St. Louis traded Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras and Lars Nootbaar over the last year.
The second the Cardinals are confident in their core, then it’s time to spend and bring seasoned veterans back to town. They’re not likely to be like the Dodgers and have a team full of them. But the Cardinals need a few guys to put around these young players who have been around the block and have had success.
It’s not a coincidence that the Cardinals have struggled in the second half in both of the last two seasons. The MLB season is very long. One of the greatest difficulties is actually adjusting to the schedule and learning how to maximize your play over the entire season. In the first half of both of the last two seasons, the Cardinals were great. Then, they ran out of gas. It’s one of the reasons why you need veterans around.
Now, of course, the Cardinals’ core is going to get older and gain that experience themselves. Burleson and Walker both have multiple seasons of big league action under their belt. But St. Louis needs more. For Los Angeles and Milwaukee, both have their cores in place and have supplemented their rosters around that. Plus, they have veterans who have legit playoff experience and are leaders in the clubhouse. For the Cardinals, they need to solidify the core and then add veterans back.
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