I have been rightly accused of being over optimistic about the St. Louis Cardinals and I want to be clear this is not something I share with the intention of inferring that the upcoming 2026 season will turn out this way. However, if you’re looking for just a tiny glimmer of hope that the upcoming season may not be the catastrophe that it’s projected to be, take a look back 41 years to the 1985 St. Louis Cardinals team.
I know what nearly all of the projections say about the upcoming St. Louis Cardinals 2026 season and I’m not debating their potential accuracy. What I think is worth a look, though, is what the “experts” thought would happen to the 1985 St. Louis Cardinals team that one of my friends reminded me of. Spoiler Alert: they nearly won the World Series if not for a missed call at first base.
Many have forgotten that the 1985 St. Louis Cardinals were predicted to finish in last place in their division. The reasons for those low projections were based on reasonable questions. Future Hall of Fame closer Bruce Sutter left the Cardinals for the Atlanta Braves which meant the St. Louis bullpen had a hole in it. Many pundits didn’t see a clear dominant starter on the roster. On February 1, 1985, the St. Louis Cardinals traded for Jack Clark from the San Francisco Giants which was viewed as risky due to his past injury issues. There was also a bombshell report from The Washington Post that 11 St. Louis Cardinals in the early 1980’s that were heavy users of cocaine. To say the 1985 Cardinals had challenges was an understatement. Oh, and Whitey Herzog was in the middle of a rebuild after the Cardinals missed the playoffs in 1983 and 1984 after winning the 1982 World Series. Sound somewhat familiar?
There are some big differences between that 1985 St. Louis Cardinals team and the state of the 2026 squad. First, the St. Louis Cardinals were carrying momentum from the previous season. The team closed out the 1984 campaign on a 37-25 run. Whitey Herzog was also actively adding pieces to the roster with the intention of building a winner meant to contend as soon as possible. The “rebuild” of 1985 was of the major league roster and not prospects in the farm system. Also, the 1985 team were only 3 years out from winning the World Series while the current Cardinals squad has not seen a World Series banner since 2011.
The projections of last place in 1985 were based on valid questions and uncertainties, but what the “experts” could not predict were some pleasant surprises. 1985 was the rookie season for Vince Coleman who was not expected to be an immediate star, but he proceeded to steal 110 bases. The prognosticators also didn’t foresee Willie McGee having an MVP year leading the league with a scorching .353 batting average. John Tudor became the St. Louis Cardinals ace notching 21 wins. The team that was projected to finish last instead ended the 1985 season with the best record in baseball. What followed during the playoffs were some of the most iconic St. Louis Cardinals moments including Ozzie Smith’s “go crazy” walk-off home run and Jack Clark slamming the door on the Dodgers.
To reiterate, I’m not projecting a best record in baseball kind of season for the 2026 St. Louis Cardinals. My point is that a good or even great season isn’t impossible. The roster does have young players who could surprise and have breakout years. I fully admit that the roster as it looks at the start of Spring Training has a LOT more questions than answers, but I’m not surrendering the upcoming season until we play the games. Yes, the odds say we’ll struggle, but there is precedent for the St. Louis Cardinals shocking the world. It’s happened before and it’s not impossible that it could happen again.
