Cardinals fans now have definitive proof that MLB Network is biased against them

The St. Louis Cardinals nailed down a win against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Aug. 6, buoyed by solid games from Jordan Walker and Lars Nootbaar. The team clawed back from a 3-1 deficit to win 5-3 and earn a series victory on the road against a very strong team. The Cardinals deserved some respect for the gritty showing, but MLB Network had different ideas.

MLB Network drooled over Shohei Ohtani's outing in a Dodgers loss.

The Dodgers have been ramping up Ohtani carefully on the mound after he underwent his second elbow surgery, and the ace pitched well in a limited showing against the Cardinals, going four innings and allowing two hits, one run and no walks and striking out eight batters. But if you listened to MLB Network host Greg Amsinger after the game, you would have thought Ohtani had just twirled a nine-inning, no-hit masterpiece.

The two-way player also hit a home run in the game. The long ball marked Ohtani's 1,000th major league hit and provoked more gushing from the star-struck Amsinger, whose comment on the Dodgers "winning a game that they lost" was absolutely asinine.

Yes, the Dodgers are almost certainly headed to the postseason again, led by a baseball unicorn in Ohtani, while the Cardinals just sold their assets at the trade deadline and are likely set to endure another rough season in 2026, but the Cardinals still have some fight left in them, and that was on display in Los Angeles with some timely hitting and strong bullpen production, especially from Kyle Leahy.

One would expect a network like ESPN to fawn over Ohtani — if they talked about baseball — but MLB Network should have a bit more dignity. Everyone knows Ohtani is an all-time great, so why not wait until he performs well in a game that the Dodgers actually win to express your undying love for the superstar? Perhaps Amsinger could have thrown some respect the Cardinals' way for their ability to come from behind in the game despite Ohtani's strong start.

Ohtani is the face of baseball and deserves plenty of regard, and even the Cardinals have fallen into the trap of promoting him instead of their own team to get fans to the ballpark. However, there's a point where the "glaze" for Ohtani becomes too much to bear, and if that MLB Network segment was any indication, Amsinger should be working at a bakery. Maybe complimenting the Cardinals wouldn't get the clicks on social media, but it would at least allow him and the channel to retain some respectability.