St. Louis Cardinals at San Diego Padres
Game 1: 7:10 p.m. Thursday (ESPN)
Game 2: 6:45 p.m. Friday (Apple TV)
Game 3: 4:15 p.m. Saturday (FOX)
Game 4: 1:10 p.m. Sunday (Padres.TV)
In the standings
St. Louis Cardinals (21-15, 2nd in NL Central)
The Cardinals, who are supposed to be rebuilding, have the seventh-best record in the majors and have won seven of their last 10 games, although they are still 3½ games behind the Cubs in their division. The Padres took four of seven last year against the Cardinals, including two of three at Petco Park.
San Diego Padres (22-14, 2nd in NL West)
The Padres won the final two games in San Francisco to win the series, their first after dropping back-to-back series to the Cubs and White Sox. San Diego is a half-game behind the Dodgers in the division and has the sixth-best record in the majors.
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St. Louis: The Cardinals begin the weekend as the only winning team with a negative run differential (minus-1). They are seventh with a .723 OPS, 18th with a 4.30 rotation ERA and 27th with a 4.87 bullpen ERA. OF Jordan Walker has two of the team’s five home runs over the last week (1.330 OPS), while rookie 2B JJ Wetherholt is hitting .200/.259/.320 over his last six games. LHP Justin Bruihl (5.29 ERA) leads the team with 18 appearances, while RHP Riley O’Brien leads the team with a 19-to-1 strikeout to walk ratio as the team’s closer.
San Diego: The Padres’ plus-7 run differential is eighth best in the majors despite the team’s .691 OPS ranking 22nd. The Padres also rank 23rd in rotation ERA (4.59) and 10th in bullpen ERA (3.75). SS Xander Bogaerts has two of the team’s seven homers over the last week (.992 OPS) and OF Jackson Merrill leads the Padres with a 1.121 OPS over that stretch. OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.588), OF Ramón Laureano (.544), 3B Manny Machado (.513 OPS), C Freddy Fermin (.297) and C Luis Campusano (.250) all have an OPS under .600 over the last week. RHP Mason Miller (1.04 ERA) leads the team with 18 appearances out of the bullpen, as well as a 11.3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Matthew Liberatore delivers against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning of a baseball game, Saturday, April 25, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Le)
Pitching matchups
Thursday
Cardinals LHP Matthew Liberatore (1-1, 4.50 ERA) | The former first-rounder has two quality starts in seven trips to the mound this year and he’s allowed eight home runs in 36 innings. Liberatore has a 2.57 ERA in 14 innings against the Padres. He lost both starts last year despite a 2.08 ERA over 8⅔ innings.
Padres RHP Michael King (3-3, 2.95 ERA) | The four runs that King allowed in his last start (6 IP) tied a season high. He’s gone six innings in four of his six starts so far. King threw 3 ⅓ shutout innings at the Cardinals as a reliever in 2023 and allowed two runs in 4⅓ innings in a loss in a start in 2024.
Friday
Cardinals RHP Michael McGreevy (2-2, 2.52 ERA) | The former first-rounder has a 3.59 ERA in 158 innings since his debut in 2024. He has turned in quality starts in four of his seven outings this season. Both of McGreevy’s starts against the Padres came last year (10⅔ IP, 11 ER), although he won the second in San Diego (6 IP, 4 ER).
Padres RHP Griffin Canning (0-0, 1.80 ERA) | He struck out seven and allowed a run on three hits and three walks in five innings on Sunday in his Padres debut. He threw 42 of his 73 pitches for strikes. Canning has a 3.63 ERA in four career starts against the Cardinals, including six innings of one-run ball in a win last year.
Saturday
Cardinals RHP Dustin May (3-3, 5.15 ERA) | The former Dodgers third-rounder has a 5.01 ERA in 169 innings since losing all of 2024 to injuries. That includes a 5.40 ERA in 28⅓ innings last year after the trade to Boston. May has a 2.45 ERA over his last five starts. He has a 3.80 ERA in 64 innings against the Padres in the regular season, but he allowed six runs — five earned — in five innings in a no-decision last year.
Padres RHP Randy Vásquez (3-1, 3.20 ERA) | He has allowed eight runs over his last two starts (10⅔ IP), striking out just six against five walks in those two games. Vásquez has a 4.35 ERA in four starts so far this year at Petco Park. Vásquez has a 4.91 ERA in three career starts against the Cardinals, including two last year (8⅔ IP, 6 ER).
Sunday
Cardinals RHP Kyle Leahy (3-1, 3.20 ERA) | The 28-year-old has not completed six innings yet this season, but he also hast thrown less than five innings just once in seven starts. Leahy has only faced the Padres as a reliever, scattering 5⅓ shutout innings over an appearance in 2024 (1 IP) and two appearances last year (4⅓ IP).
Padres RHP Walker Buehler (2-2, 5.64 ERA) | He has just one quality start in seven starts this year, but he’s also allowed just two homers in 30⅓ innings. Buehler is 3-0 with a 3.90 ERA in five starts against the Cardinals, but he allowed five runs in five innings in a win last year.
2026 team leaders
OPS: Cardinals—OF Jordan Walker (.956), C Ivan Herrera (.825), 1B Alec Burleson (.788); Padres—SS Xander Bogaerts (.814), OF Ramón Laureano (.726), 3B Manny Machado (.679).
HRs: Cardinals—Walker (10), 2B JJ Wetherholt (7), three tied with 5; Padres—Bogaerts (7), Laureano (5), Machado (5), 1B Gavin Sheets (5).
RBIs: Cardinals—Burleson (29), Walker (27), 3B Nolan Gorman (21); Padres—Bogaerts (22), Laureano (19), Machado (18), OF Jackson Merrill (18).
Steals: Cardinals—Walker (7), OF Victor Scott (6), Wetherholt (4), SS Masyn Winn (4); Padres—OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (9), Merrill (7), three tied with 4.
Saves: Cardinals—RHP Riley O’Brien (10-for-12, 2.12 ERA); Padres—RHP Mason Miller (11-for-11, 1.04 ERA).
Holds: Cardinals—LHP JoJo Romero (10, 3.71 ERA), LHP Jusitn Bruihl (5, 5.29 ERA), RHP George Soriano (5, 3.52 ERA), RHP Ryne Stanek (5, 7.20 ERA); Padres—RHP Jason Adam (6, 1.80 ERA), LHP Adrián Morejón (6, 5.40 ERA), RHP Jeremiah Estrada (4, 4.66 ERA), LHP Kyle Hart (4, 5.40 ERA).
Training room
St. Louis: OF Nathan Church is day-to-day after exiting after he was hit on the left leg by a pitch on Wednesday. OF Lars Nootbaar (heels) won’t return until late May, while RHP Matt Pushard (knee) and INF Ramón Urias (elbow) remain without timelines.
San Diego: C Luis Campusano is day-to-day after fouling a ball off his toe. 2B Jake Cronenworth is on the injured list with concussion symptoms. RHP Germán Márquez is on the 15-day injured list with nerve inflammation in his forearm. RHP Nick Pivetta (forearm) has not resumed throwing, while RHP Joe Musgrove (Tommy John) has not progressed back to the mound since his spring setback.