The St. Louis Cardinals are entering the final stretch of the 2026 regular season, and their remaining six games will be played away from home, beginning with a three-game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates. St. Louis travels to Pittsburgh knowing that there will be no postseason baseball in October, but the final week still offers plenty for players and the organization to fight for. Individual milestones, momentum heading into the offseason and the opportunity to finish the year on a positive note all remain on the table as the Cardinals prepare to face the Pirates at PNC Park.
The series begins Tuesday night with right-hander Andre Pallante taking the mound for St. Louis against Pittsburgh right-hander Jared Jones. Pallante enters the matchup with a 12-7 record, a 3.70 ERA and 104 strikeouts, making him one of the more dependable pieces of the Cardinals’ pitching staff during the season. Jones, meanwhile, owns a 4-6 record with a 4.17 ERA and 109 strikeouts. He has won two of his last three starts, although his most recent appearance against Milwaukee ended without a decision after he surrendered seven hits and three earned runs over five innings. St. Louis will look to put pressure on him early and avoid allowing Pittsburgh’s lineup to settle into the game.
Wednesday’s matchup is scheduled to feature left-hander Matthew Liberatore for the Cardinals, while Pittsburgh’s starter has yet to be determined. Liberatore has endured a difficult season statistically, entering the game at 5-14 with a 5.36 ERA, but he has also accumulated 148 strikeouts. The final weeks of the season give him another opportunity to finish strongly and provide the Cardinals with something positive to build around heading into 2027. Thursday’s finale presents the most intriguing pitching matchup of the series, with Kyle Leahy scheduled to face Pittsburgh ace Paul Skenes. Leahy has put together a solid campaign at 10-5 with a 3.65 ERA and 129 strikeouts, while Skenes enters at 10-11 with a 3.91 ERA and an impressive 192 strikeouts.
Skenes, however, has not been at his sharpest in his most recent outing. On September 18, he allowed six hits and five earned runs over six innings against his opponent and ultimately received a no-decision. That gives St. Louis a potential opportunity if the Cardinals can produce quality at-bats and capitalize on mistakes. The Pirates will also be looking for a bounce-back performance from their young ace, making Thursday’s finale a particularly interesting way to close the series.
Beyond the starting pitching, Pittsburgh has several offensive threats capable of creating problems for the Cardinals. Second baseman Brandon Lowe leads the Pirates with 33 home runs and 93 RBIs, giving him significant power in the middle of the lineup. Center fielder Oneil Cruz has contributed 20 home runs and 67 RBIs while hitting .280, while first baseman Ryan O’Hearn has produced 18 homers, 73 RBIs and a .264 average. Bryan Reynolds has added 17 home runs and 71 RBIs with a .262 batting average, while right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez has supplied 17 homers and 47 RBIs. St. Louis’ pitching staff will have to limit extra-base damage and prevent Pittsburgh’s power hitters from turning mistakes into quick runs.
For the Cardinals, the final six games are also about individual milestones. Alec Burleson enters the closing stretch leading the National League in RBIs with 111, although Sal Stewart is directly behind him with 110 and Pete Crow-Armstrong sits at 105. That makes the RBI race one of the more interesting individual storylines to monitor as the regular season reaches its conclusion. Every productive at-bat could have significance for Burleson and the Cardinals, particularly with only a handful of games remaining.
Jordan Walker also has a personal milestone within reach. Walker remains stuck at 28 home runs and has not gone deep since September 1 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Reaching the 30-homer mark would give him a notable accomplishment to finish the season, although the larger priority is continuing the improvements he made earlier in 2026. His approach at the plate, particularly his swing decisions, has been an important part of his development, and the Cardinals would like to see him close the season looking more like the version of Walker who showed improved discipline and consistency earlier in the year.
JJ Wetherholt provides another intriguing storyline. The young Cardinals infielder has 17 home runs and will return to the area where he grew up, giving the Pittsburgh series an additional personal connection. Wetherholt has enjoyed playing at PNC Park, and with six games left on the schedule, reaching 20 home runs remains within the realm of possibility. A strong finish could add another encouraging chapter to his development while giving Cardinals fans something to watch closely during an otherwise disappointing end to the team’s season.
From a team perspective, however, St. Louis has very little margin for error. The Cardinals enter the final six games three games behind Pittsburgh and carrying the same record as the Miami Marlins. The Washington Nationals are also only three games behind St. Louis, meaning the standings can still shift during the final week. The Cardinals need to win five of their final six games to finish the season at .500, a difficult challenge considering that their schedule includes this trip to Pittsburgh followed by a weekend series in Milwaukee.
That makes the three games against the Pirates particularly important if St. Louis wants to give itself any realistic chance of reaching that .500 mark. Winning the series would not change the Cardinals’ postseason fate, but it could provide a much-needed positive finish and prevent the final week from becoming a simple countdown to the offseason. A strong performance in Pittsburgh could also give several young players valuable experience in high-pressure situations while allowing the organization to evaluate which pieces deserve larger roles moving forward.
The Cardinals therefore arrive at PNC Park with a combination of pride, individual milestones and unfinished business. There is no October berth waiting at the end of the road, but there are still reasons to watch closely. Pallante, Liberatore and Leahy will try to set the tone on the mound, while Burleson’s RBI chase, Walker’s pursuit of 30 home runs and Wetherholt’s push toward 20 homers add individual intrigue. With Milwaukee waiting after Pittsburgh, St. Louis has little room for mistakes. The final six games will ultimately serve as both a closing chapter on 2026 and an early glimpse at which players can carry momentum into the Cardinals’ next season.
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