Adam Wainwright makes a wild Cardinals postseason prediction

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Adam Wainwright makes a wild Cardinals postseason prediction originally appeared on The Sporting News
The St. Louis Cardinals were one of many teams to sell at the trade deadline, but for a team that was on the cusp of buying not too long ago, their decision to sell all but confirmed the notion that 2025 wasn't their year.
But, for franchise legend Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals still have a chance. Wainwright on Twitter/X made a wild prediction for the Cardinals regarding their postseason chances. It's more than just bold; it's a completely wild prediction.
"I'm looking at the schedule," Wainwright writes, "I'm calling it now. The @Cardinals shock everybody and are playing for a wild card spot on the last series of the season against the @Cubs. Cubs-Cards last 3 days of the regular season would be wild."
Wainwright is one step below predicting that the Cardinals make the postseason, but he's still predicting they get onto the doorstep of a wild card spot. With the Milwaukee Brewers 14 games up on the Cardinals, the wild card is St. Louis's only chance.
Fortunately for the Cardinals, and Wainwright's bold prediction, they are just 4.5 games out of a wild-card spot. Making up that ground is not far-fetched, especially if the team goes on a hot streak down the stretch of the season.
Such a scenario might play out, thanks in part to their middle-of-the-pack schedule for the rest of the season. Wainwright's main talking point is that the Cardinals' schedule has led him to believe that the final series of the season could determine if the Cardinals make the postseason in 2025 or not.
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Their schedule is the 14th hardest in baseball, according to Tankathon.com. It's easier than the schedules of the Cincinnati Reds, Milwaukee Brewers, and New York Mets, some of their top competitors in the NL.
Chasing the Brewers is unlikely, but with the Mets reeling, and the Reds only two games up on the Cardinals, the Cardinals have a chance to surpass those two NL teams and potentially occupy the final NL wild card spot.
However, some of their other NL competition in the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, and Los Angeles Dodgers have the three easiest schedules remaining in baseball. If they are to make the postseason, their best bet will be to surpass the Mets for the final spot.
Or, if the Cubs struggle down the stretch, they could open the door to the Cardinals in that regular-season-ending series. It's an unlikely scenario, but a lot of the Cubs have been a little shaky since the All-Star break.
St. Louis doesn't have a high chance of making the postseason, but the schedule could play out favorably for the Cardinals. Oli Marmol overperformed in the first half of the year; it wouldn't be a complete surprise if he did so in the second half.
Wainwright's prediction is a wild one, but it's not as far-fetched as it initially seems. Just 4.5 games back, the Cardinals could get hot, and if they beat the Cubs on Sunday night, they would have back-to-back series wins over the Dodgers and Cubs, two top teams.
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