The Cardinals' recent surge is bad news for 2025

The St. Louis Cardinals have been on a heater over the past few weeks as the curtain begins to fall on the season. Since Aug. 20, the Cardinals hold a 13-8 record, and while the team's playoff chances are microscopic, the Cardinals' hot streak could convince the front office to run it back with much of the same roster in 2025.

The postseason is easier to reach than at any time in the sport's history, and the Cardinals need only to point to a couple of putrid series, such as when they dropped three of four against the Chicago Cubs and were swept in three by the Cincinnati Reds, as reasons for their likely postseason exclusion. If the Cardinals had won those series, they could be knocking on the door to the playoffs. And, as the front office loves to say, when you make the playoffs, anything can happen.

With this logic undoubtedly stirring in the minds of the Cardinals brass, the organizational mindset might have switched from a youth movement in 2025 to a belief that they can reach the playoffs with what they have. The Cardinals have already expressed interest in bringing back Paul Goldschmidt, who has shown signs of his former All-Star self over the past month, hitting .346 over the team's last 21 games, and Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn could be next in line to see contract renewals.

Re-signing these veterans would nullify the thought of younger players getting an extended look in the major leagues in 2025, which is what the Cardinals desperately need. Instead of seeing what players such as Quinn Mathews, Michael McGreevy and Gordon Graceffo can do in extended looks at the highest level, the Cardinals will be content to use what they know in the forms of Lynn and Gibson. This safe, risk-averse, high-floor strategy for players is what is keeping the Cardinals in the middle of the pack in the National League instead of allowing them to ascend.

The Cardinals can't continue to trot out the same players in the twilight of their careers and expect different results. If the team had been limping through September, it might have been an easier call for the team to cut ties with Goldschmidt and others and see what the next generation of Cardinals could do. Instead, the front office is likely salivating at the idea of using this late-season boost to retain their aging players and make a few low-risk moves to freshen up the corpse of a once-proud franchise.