A national outlet is finally placing respect on the Cardinals name

It took until early May and for the St. Louis Cardinals to take down the back-to-back world champion Los Angeles Dodgers in two out of three games, but some baseball writers are now, at long last, giving the Cardinals their flowers for their performance thus far on the season.

On MLB.com's latest team power rankings, contributors to the site compiled an aggregate ranking that placed the Cardinals at No. 9, a dramatic ascent from No. 17 from last week. That eight-point leap ties the Cardinals with the Chicago White Sox for the largest jump over that span. Will Leitch, one of the voters and the article's author, mentioned the Seattle Mariners' sweep of the Cardinals and that instead of the defeats spelling doom for the team, St. Louis rebounded by sweeping the Pittsburgh Pirates in a four-game stint and then playing well against the aforementioned Dodgers.

Rookie second baseman JJ Wetherholt is a key piece to this success, but Jordan Walker's progress is the linchpin for the Cardinals' headway in the rankings. Many fans essentially wrote Walker off as a lost cause coming into the 2026 season, but his sizzling start to the season and noticeably revamped approach at the plate have him as not only the Cardinals' top hitter, but among the best in the major leagues, as he's tied for eighth in home runs and seventh in slugging percentage.

The Cardinals still trail 3 divisional foes in the power rankings.

The Cardinals have the misfortune of playing in the league's toughest division so far this season. Every team in the NL Central is above .500, and although the Cardinals rank ninth in the power rankings, they're still behind the Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds on that list. The Cubs are ranked fourth, as they've won 11 consecutive home games and hold a record of 22-12; the Reds are seventh, and Leitch pointed to the potential upcoming return of starting pitcher Nick Lodolo as a sizable boost to their rotation; and the Brewers are eighth, as starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff just landed on the injured list but the team is still receiving the benefit of the doubt.

Maybe it's for the best that the division is packed to the gills this season so that the Cardinals and Chaim Bloom aren't swayed into buying at the deadline. The Cardinals need to stay strong and sell their remaining assets come August, and having several teams ahead of them should dissuade the Cardinals from believing they can seriously compete in 2026.

But even with that likelihood perhaps dampening fans' spirits in the coming months, this young Cardinals team is a blast to watch, and the club deserves its spot in the top 10.

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