The Cardinals put a 3-spot on the board before the Braves recorded their third out and tacked on another in the fourth, and that was more than enough of a cushion. Atlanta chipped away with a single run in the seventh but never threatened to make it a real ballgame, managing just 6 hits and stranding traffic when it mattered.
It's a familiar shape for both clubs lately. The Braves have alternated hot and cold stretches all month, taking 2 of 3 from Pittsburgh only to drop the series opener here, while St. Louis has been just as inconsistent, getting blown out by Milwaukee one night and grinding out a win the next. Neither team has found the kind of sustained rhythm you'd expect from a contender in mid-July.
- 10-Day-ILMike Yastrzemski (LF) — Atlanta placed Yastrzemski on the 10-day injured list Saturday with left elbow inflammation.07/11
- 10-Day-ILRonald Acuna Jr. (RF) — Manager Walt Weis said Tuesday that Acuna (hamstring) could begin a rehab assignment next week, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.07/07
- 10-Day-ILHa-Seong Kim (SS) — Atlanta placed Kim on the 10-day injured list Saturday, retroactive to Wednesday, due to right middle finger inflammation.07/04
- 15-Day-ILRobert Suarez (RP) — Suarez (elbow) hasn't been cleared to resume throwing and won't be ready to rejoin the Atlanta bullpen immediately after the All-Star break, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.07/10
- 15-Day-ILMartin Perez (SP) — Atlanta placed Perez on the 15-day injured list Monday due to a left forearm contusion.07/06
- suspensionJurickson Profar (LF) — Profar will miss the full 2026 season after the appeal of his 162-game PED suspension was denied Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.05/08
- 60-Day-ILAJ Smith-Shawver (SP) — Smith-Shawver (elbow) will make his next rehab start Saturday with Triple-A Gwinnett, Chad Bishop of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.07/10
- 60-Day-ILSpencer Schwellenbach (SP) — Schwellenbach (elbow) will likely report to Atlanta's spring training facility in early July and could be a candidate to rejoin the major-league rotation by late August or early September, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.06/29
- 60-Day-ILSpencer Strider (SP) — Atlanta transferred Strider (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Wednesday.06/17
- 60-Day-ILSean Murphy (C) — Murphy had the cast on his left hand removed Tuesday and is now wearing a splint to protect his fractured middle finger, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reprots.06/04
- 60-Day-ILJoe Jimenez (RP) — Atlanta manager Walt Weiss revealed Wednesday that Jimenez underwent another surgery on his left knee 3-to-4 weeks ago, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.05/13
- 60-Day-ILJoey Wentz (RP) — Atlanta placed Wentz (knee) on the 60-day injured list Tuesday.05/08
- 60-Day-ILMax Rajcic (RP) — The Cardinals transferred Rajcic (elbow) to the 60-day injured list Tuesday.07/07
- 60-Day-ILRamon Urias (3B) — Urias (elbow) returned to St. Louis to undergo an examination on his left elbow, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.06/12
The injury list is doing a lot of the talking on both sides right now. Atlanta's rotation is already down Spencer Strider, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver and Martin Perez, which puts real pressure on López to keep building innings as he works back from last year's shoulder surgery. St. Louis is dealing with its own issues on the position-player side, and Liberatore's struggles this year have only made the Cardinals' margin for error thinner.