Was Monday's loss a blip or a reality check for the Cardinals?

The Cardinals seemed to have figured things out after falling to 15-24 earlier this month. Their recent surge began on Mother's Day when Oli Marmol and Daniel Descalso were tossed from the game in Milwaukee. St. Louis rallied from 3-0 to snap a seven-game losing skid.

Since then, the Cardinals have gone 10-3 and are now just two games under .500 as opposed to nine games under. It's safe to say that things are looking a lot better for the Redbirds as the month of May draws to a close.

However, they lost a tough one on Monday to the Reds, with the only offense coming on a solo home run from Paul Goldschmidt. The offense looked a lot like it has for most of the year, and not on this recent hot stretch.

We've seen the Cardinals cash in on their opportunities, get timely hits, and punch back after falling behind. Unlike last year, this team appears to have fight in them, and you can trust that when they get down, they'll fight to punch back and turn things around.

Yesterday was more of what we saw in April and the beginning of May, which is certainly concerning for the Cardinals and their fans, who are hoping that Monday's loss was a blip on the radar screen and that they'll get going again soon.

Monday's loss could be one of two things. It could be a simple blip, or it could serve as a reality check. In this piece, we'll discuss whether this game was a blip or a sign of things to come.