The Orioles didn’t play yesterday and they lost a half-game in the Wild Card race, leaving them 2 ½ back going into tonight’s series opener in St. Louis.

The Guardians moved into the third spot. The Astros, Twins and Blue Jays also are ahead of the Orioles.

The Cardinals won two of three from the Orioles last season at Camden Yards and swept a three-game series at Busch Stadium in 2024. They’re 15-9 all-time against the Orioles, who have faced the Cardinals fewer times than any other active team.

Samuel Basallo is catching tonight. Coby Mayo is the designated hitter and he’s batting fourth. Christian Franklin is in center field and Leody Taveras is in right.

Pete Alonso is a career .292/.400/.646 hitter with 10 doubles and 13 home runs in 39 games against the Cardinals. He has a .333/.442/.708 slash line with six doubles and seven homers in 20 games at Busch Stadium.

Alonso’s career 1.150 OPS in 20 road games is the highest of any player at Busch Stadium since the venue opened in 2006 in a minimum 75 plate appearances.

Alonso has hit at least one home run in each of the last five series and in 25 different series this season to tie for the major league lead, per STATS.

Chris Bassitt has allowed five runs and 13 hits in 11 innings in his two starts since returning from lower-back surgery. He’s posted a 6.92 ERA and 1.577 WHIP in five career starts against the Cardinals. He’s allowed 16 runs and 22 hits in 19 2/3 innings in his four starts in St. Louis.

Former Oriole Ramón Urías, reinstated from the 60-day injured list, is 4-for-8 with a home run against Bassitt. Alec Burleson is 3-for-5 with a double and home run.

Bassitt is making his 15th career appearance with the Orioles, and the Cardinals are the 15th different opponent, which is a club record. Per STATS, Bassitt will become the 13th pitcher since 1900 to face 15 different opponents in his first 15 games with any team.

Bassitt is holding opponents to a .244 average with two outs, compared to .352 with no outs and .307 with one out.

Reliever Cam Sanders hasn’t allowed a hit to his last 21 batters. The only pitcher with a longer active streak is Arizona’s Justin Martinez (29).

The Orioles have homered in 12 straight games, their longest streak since August 2024 (16).

They’re 11-8 on the road since the All-Star break.

Since Aug. 18, the Orioles are batting .127 (8-for-63) with one double, one home run and a .370 OPS against left-handed pitching. Mayo is slashing .306/.364/.741 (33-for-108) with eight doubles, 13 home runs and 24 RBIs against lefties.

The Cardinals have lost three in a row and five of seven after a stretch of five wins in six games. They’re 66-66 overall, putting them in third place in the National League Central, and 32-34 at home.

The offense has produced a .699 OPS that ranks 24th in the majors and a .382 slugging percentage that’s 26th.

The rotation has a 3.95 ERA that ranks 11th. The bullpen’s 4.43 ERA is 24th.

Left-hander Matthew Liberatore is starting tonight. The team had the spot listed as TBA until earlier today.

Liberatore is 5-11 with a 5.04 ERA in 25 starts, with 125 strikeouts in 125 innings. Left-handers are hitting .296 with an .872 OPS, while right-handers are hitting .276 with a .781 OPS. He has two quality starts this month, including six scoreless innings with one hit allowed in Toronto, but he’s 0-5 in the second half.

The Orioles haven’t seen much of him. Liberatore has made one relief appearance against them in his career and tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings.

Tyler O’Neill is 2-for-2 with a home run, but he’s on the bench.

The Cardinals have allowed six or more runs in four straight games, including a three-game sweep by the Phillies over the weekend. St. Louis hasn’t endured a longer streak since a five-game stretch in August 2017.

Burleson and Jordan Walker have each driven in 96 runs this season, tied for the second most in the majors in 2026.

The Cardinals have turned 131 double plays to lead the majors.

For the Orioles
Jackson Holliday 2B
Pete Alonseo 1B
Gunnar Henderson SS
Coby Mayo DH
Christian Encarnacion-Strand 3B
Samuel Basallo C
Christian Franklin CF
Dylan Beavers LF
Leody Taveras RF

Chris Bassitt RHP

Pitcher Zach Eflin reached 10 years of service time today.

For the Cardinals
JJ Wetherholt SS
Iván Herrera C
Alec Burleson 1B
Jordan Walker RF
Joshua Báez LF
Nolan Gorman DH
Ramón Urías 3B
Nathan Church CF
José Fermín 2B

Matthew Liberatore LHP