{"id":679531,"date":"2026-04-20T01:39:30","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T01:39:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/679531\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T01:39:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T01:39:30","slug":"the-cardinals-are-coming-to-town-and-miami-needs-these-three-games-more-than-it-knows","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/679531\/","title":{"rendered":"The Cardinals Are Coming to Town \u2014 and Miami Needs These Three Games More Than It Knows"},"content":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a version of this series that doesn\u2019t matter at all. Two teams in the middle of April, both hovering around .500, getting three games in before the real summer grind begins. Cardinal fans will watch on Cardinals.TV<\/a> from their living rooms in St. Louis. Marlins fans who show up to loanDepot park<\/a> will have good sightlines and modest expectations.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the other version: the Miami Marlins are 10-12, having just snapped a four-game losing streak with Sunday\u2019s win over Milwaukee. The Cardinals are 13-8, riding a four-game winning streak that includes a Sunday extra-innings win over Houston \u2014 improving their perfect extra-inning record. Jos\u00e9 Ferm\u00edn was the story of that win. Jordan Walker extended his hitting streak. The Cardinals are doing exactly what Cardinals teams do \u2014 playing efficient, close-game, next-man-up baseball with a negative run differential that should mean they\u2019re mediocre and somehow doesn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

Strap in or strap on, whichever the case may be, and yes \u2014 the roof situation will be noted.<\/p>\n

The Standings Argument (Why This Series Actually Matters)<\/p>\n

On the morning of April 20, the Marlins have produced 24 more runs than the New York Mets this season. They are 7-5 at home. They have an 85-percent unwritten season ahead of them. The trade deadline is 105 days away.<\/p>\n

The 2025 Miami Marlins rode Sandy Alc\u00e1ntara to a 79-83 season that flirted with trade deadline relevance and went nowhere. The 2023 Arizona Diamondbacks swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Wild Card round. In the National League, sometimes good April baseball and a hot October week is the whole game.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the attendance reality that hovers over every Marlins home series: competitive baseball in March and April buys May attendance. That\u2019s not a theory \u2014 it\u2019s the pattern this franchise has shown repeatedly. The Marlins opened the season with Opening Day buzz, a Kyle Stowers bobblehead, a sellout atmosphere post-WBC. Then the losing streak hit. The Brewers drew under 12,000 per game. The Cardinals \u2014 Monday through Wednesday, no giveaway on Monday, no national broadcast \u2014 will test whether Sunday\u2019s win changed the energy or just the scoreboard.<\/p>\n

The promotional calendar helps: the Marlins have Mexican Heritage Celebration on May 2, Cuban Heritage Night on May 23, and a Star Wars Day in between. But those are May. This is April, and the Cardinals are here now, and a two-of-three series win is the difference between a team that\u2019s building something and a team that\u2019s burning through a rotation.<\/p>\n

The Cardinals, for their part, have a chance to take a two-game lead in the NL Central with a sweep \u2014 all five NL Central teams are above .500, and the division race is tighter than any of the preseason projections suggested. For a 13-8 club with a negative-8 run differential, they are flying exactly as high as their luck and next-man-up execution will carry them.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Miami Marlins Kyle Stowers reacts after hitting a single during the ninth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Sunday, April 19, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo\/Lynne Sladky)<\/p>\n

The Roger Dean Connection<\/p>\n

Before the international roster breakdown, one piece of organizational geography worth noting: the Miami Marlins and St. Louis Cardinals share Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium in Jupiter, Florida for spring training. They practice in the same complex, their minor leaguers see each other in extended spring training, their front offices have made trades with each other, and their coaching pipelines have overlapped in ways that create the kind of quiet familiarity that doesn\u2019t show up in any box score.<\/p>\n

This was supposed to be the series where that familiarity manifested as a competitive mismatch \u2014 a rebuilding Cardinals team vs. an ascending Marlins roster. Instead, both teams have surprised in opposite directions from expectations. The Cardinals are 13-8 despite a negative run differential. The Marlins are 10-12 despite a roster that looks better on paper than their record. The Jupiter connection is background. The scoreboard is what counts.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara, left, talks with catcher Agust\u00edn Ram\u00edrez, right, during the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the New York Mets, Sunday, March 22, 2026, in Jupiter, Fla. (AP Photo\/Lynne Sladky)<\/p>\n

The International Players Coming to Town<\/p>\n

This is where WBN earns its frame. When people think Cardinals, they think Musial and Gibson and Ozzie and Pujols and the institutional machinery of Cardinals Way \u2014 a term that Cardinals beat writers have begun using again, carefully, after a year or two of silence. They don\u2019t typically think \u201cinternational roster.\u201d They should start.<\/p>\n

Ivan Herrera ?? \u2014 Panama City, Panama \u00b7 Catcher<\/p>\n

Start here. Ivan Herrera is 26 years old, born in Panama City, and is in the middle of a three-man catching committee that most teams would genuinely envy. He\u2019s the most athletically gifted of the three, the one with the best arm, and the one the Cardinals appear to be betting on as a long-term piece despite the organizational depth at the position. His presence in the Cardinals lineup Monday through Wednesday is not guaranteed \u2014 St. Louis has Pedro Pag\u00e9s and Yohel Pozo splitting time \u2014 but when Herrera is behind the plate, this Cardinals team looks different.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Iv\u00e1n Herrera throws to first to out Houston Astros\u2019 Isaac Paredes during the fourth inning of a baseball game in Houston, Saturday, April 18, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ashley Landis)<\/p>\n

For WBN readers, and specifically for followers of the Miami Marlins, this is a Panama connection that matters. Leo Jim\u00e9nez is the Marlins\u2019 Panamanian infielder, a 25-year-old from Chitr\u00e9 who has been the quiet defensive anchor on this roster all season. When Herrera hits against Jim\u00e9nez\u2019s team, or when Jim\u00e9nez is on base trying to read Herrera\u2019s pickoff game, Panama City and Chitr\u00e9 are having a conversation that most English-language MLB coverage will never mention. We mention it.<\/p>\n

Jos\u00e9 Ferm\u00edn ?? \u2014 Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic \u00b7 2B\/Utility<\/p>\n

Ferm\u00edn is the Cardinals\u2019 Swiss Army knife \u2014 second base, outfield, pinch hit, late-inning defense. He\u2019s from Puerto Plata, the north coast city on the Atlantic, which has produced a quieter pipeline of MLB talent than Santiago or Santo Domingo but which quietly runs through the Cardinals organization going back years. Ferm\u00edn isn\u2019t a headliner. He\u2019s the player you don\u2019t notice until he\u2019s beaten your team twice in a week.<\/p>\n

Facing a Marlins roster anchored by Dominican players \u2014 Alc\u00e1ntara, Eury P\u00e9rez, Ram\u00edrez, Lopez, Hern\u00e1ndez \u2014 Ferm\u00edn is one of six Dominican Republic-born players who could see the field in this series. That\u2019s a lot of DR flags on both sides of the same diamond.<\/p>\n

Pedro Pag\u00e9s ?? \/ Yohel Pozo ?? \u2014 Venezuela \u00b7 Catching Committee<\/p>\n

Two Venezuelan catchers, both from different cities. Pag\u00e9s is from Maracay \u2014 a city in Aragua state that has a long baseball history. Pozo is from Maracaibo \u2014 Venezuela\u2019s oil city, on the western lake, a completely different cultural and regional identity. Both are career minor leaguers who have made the big leagues by catching well, throwing well, and not embarrassing themselves at the plate. Javier Sanoja, the Marlins\u2019 Venezuelan utility man, grew up in a Venezuelan baseball culture that would recognize both names from a young age. These are the invisible connections that exist inside every MLB game that most coverage ignores entirely.<\/p>\n

Ram\u00f3n Ur\u00edas ?? \u2014 Culiac\u00e1n, Sinaloa, Mexico \u00b7 Utility Infield<\/p>\n

The elder statesman of this Cardinals roster at 32, Ram\u00f3n Ur\u00edas is the brother of Julio Ur\u00edas and was a Gold Glove winner at third base in the American League in 2022 with Baltimore. He\u2019s now a utility piece for a young Cardinals team, which is a bit like watching a veteran wide receiver running slot routes for a team that\u2019s rebuilding around a 22-year-old quarterback. He\u2019s here to teach. He\u2019s also still capable of beating you.<\/p>\n

Xavier Edwards, the Marlins\u2019 Mexican-American infielder, is the natural counterpoint. Edwards was born in California and holds dual citizenship, but his Mexican identity informs how he\u2019s covered and recruited in Latin American markets. When Ur\u00edas and Edwards are on the same field, Mexico has two representatives in the same infield.<\/p>\n

Lars Nootbaar ?? (Honorary) \u2014 El Segundo, CA (On IL)<\/p>\n

Nootbaar won\u2019t play in this series \u2014 he\u2019s on the 60-day IL. But his story deserves a mention because it is exactly the kind of story WBN was built to cover. Born in El Segundo, California, the son of a Japanese-American mother, Nootbaar committed to Japan\u2019s samurai squad for the 2023 World Baseball Classic when he had never played in Japan a single day. He showed up. He threw himself into it. He became the American who Japan claimed as its own \u2014 jersey sales, celebrity appearances, the whole thing. He then came back to St. Louis and hit .248 with moderate production but genuine value. He\u2019s on the IL because he had surgery on both heels last fall. When he comes back \u2014 sometime in late May if recovery goes well \u2014 he\u2019ll represent one of the more genuinely international stories in the National League. Oh, he was also the least clutch STL Cardinal in the final fourth months of their dismal 2025 season.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

St. Louis Cardinals\u2019 Jordan Walker prepares to bat during the first inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros in Houston, Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo\/Ashley Landis)<\/p>\n

The Three Games
\nMonday, April 20 \u00b7 6:40 PM ET \u00b7 Max Meyer vs. Michael McGreevy<\/p>\n

This is the interesting pitching matchup. Max Meyer (1-0, 4.12 ERA) is working back from the left hip surgery that ended his 2025 season in June. He\u2019s been better than his ERA suggests \u2014 the stuff is there, the fastball sits 95-96, the slider has sharp bite \u2014 but command remains the variable. McGreevy (1-1, 2.49 ERA) is a 25-year-old from San Clemente, California, a UC Santa Barbara product who has quietly been one of the Cardinals\u2019 best starters through the first three weeks. His stuff isn\u2019t overwhelming but his command is excellent, which is exactly the profile that beats strikeout-dependent lineups that are in the middle of a slump.<\/p>\n

The loanDepot park roof will almost certainly be closed Monday evening. Miami in late April is warm enough that the humidity inside a closed dome gets oppressive. The Marlins play better with the roof closed than their attendance suggests \u2014 the artificial turf plays fast, the ball carries, and the Cardinals\u2019 pitching staff is going to feel the indoor echo in ways that visiting teams consistently underestimate.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Michael McGreevy looks on during the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Tampa Bay Rays, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in St. Louis. (AP Photo\/Joe Puetz)<\/p>\n

Tuesday, April 21 \u00b7 6:40 PM ET \u00b7 Chris Paddack vs. Dustin May<\/p>\n

The reverse-narrative matchup. Dustin May (2-2, 6.98 ERA) is a pitcher the baseball world has been waiting on since 2020, when he looked like a future ace before a Tommy John surgery cost him the better part of two years. He\u2019s been inconsistent in 2026, which is consistent with his career arc. Chris Paddack (0-3, 5.59 ERA) is Paddack \u2014 a pitcher with mid-rotation stuff who has never quite sustained the promise of his 2019 San Diego debut. Both guys need this start. Neither is pitching confidently right now.<\/p>\n

This is the most winnable game of the series for Miami \u2014 a must-win, if we\u2019re being direct about it. A Paddack good start against a May who\u2019s been leaking runs would reverse a month of misery in one evening.<\/p>\n

Wednesday, April 22 \u00b7 12:10 PM ET \u00b7 Janson Junk vs. Kyle Leahy<\/p>\n

The Wednesday day game that everyone forgets to watch and someone always wins in a weird way. Junk (0-2, 4.50 ERA) has been Miami\u2019s most frustrating starter \u2014 not bad enough to move to the bullpen, not good enough to give the team a cushion. Leahy (2-2, 5.21 ERA) is the same archetype on the Cardinals side. These are the games that NL Wild Card races are actually decided in \u2014 not the Sandy vs. Skubal matchups, but the Junk vs. Leahy Wednesdays that nobody flew to Miami for.<\/p>\n

The WBN Angle: Is The Roof Open?<\/p>\n

Check @loanDepotpark on X a couple hours before first pitch \u2014 they post the roof status for every home game. We\u2019ll update this space in the game recaps.<\/p>\n

What we can say in advance: loanDepot park\u2019s roof takes 13-15 minutes to open or close. It costs about $15 in electricity either way. The decision is made based on temperature, humidity, and rain probability. Late April in Miami means the call can go either way on any given night.<\/p>\n

Miami Locks in Three-Year Deal to Host Caribbean Series at loanDepot Park in 2028, 2029 and 2030<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The broader point stands regardless of the roof status: this is a Monday-through-Wednesday series against a St. Louis team that most casual South Florida sports fans haven\u2019t thought about since the 2006 NLCS. The energy in that building will be determined less by the roof than by whether Sunday\u2019s win over Milwaukee changed anything about how this fanbase feels heading into a workweek series. April wins buy May attendance. This is the test.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Miami Marlins manager Clayton McCullough, left, watches from the dugout during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Saturday, April 18, 2026, in Miami. (AP Photo\/Lynne Sladky)<\/p>\n

What a Series Win Looks Like<\/p>\n

Two out of three. That\u2019s the baseline. The Marlins at 12-12 going into the San Francisco road trip are a team that\u2019s building something. The Marlins at 10-14 are a different conversation \u2014 one that involves whether Peter Bendix makes any calls before May, whether Sandy Alc\u00e1ntara\u2019s trade value is being discussed in front offices the way it was in 2025, and whether this team\u2019s ceiling is limited by a bullpen that can\u2019t hold a lead in the eighth.<\/p>\n

Ivan Herrera, Jos\u00e9 Ferm\u00edn, Pedro Pag\u00e9s, and Ram\u00f3n Ur\u00edas will walk into loanDepot park Monday and look at a Marlins lineup full of players they have overlapping developmental histories with \u2014 Dominican academies, Venezuelan winter league whisper networks, the shared language of young players who came up through the same international pipeline geography. That\u2019s not a leverage point in any specific at-bat. But it is the frame through which WBN covers this series, and every series the Marlins play this season.<\/p>\n

Baseball Without Borders. Three games starting Monday. Find it on Marlins.TV and Cardinals.TV \u2014 and yes, it\u2019s also on KMOX 1120 AM in St. Louis if you\u2019re the kind of person who listens to Cardinals radio, which, if you\u2019re a Cardinals fan, you absolutely are.<\/p>\n

\u2014 MT<\/p>\n

Series at a Glance<\/p>\n

Mon 4\/20 \u00b7 6:40 PM ET \u2014 Max Meyer (1-0, 4.12) vs. Michael McGreevy (1-1, 2.49) \u00b7 Marlins.TV \/ Cardinals.TV \/ WQAM 560 \/ WAQI 710 (Spanish) \/ KMOX 1120 AM
\nTue 4\/21 \u00b7 6:40 PM ET \u2014 Chris Paddack (0-3, 5.59) vs. Dustin May (2-2, 6.98) \u00b7 Same broadcasts
\nWed 4\/22 \u00b7 12:10 PM ET \u2014 Janson Junk (0-2, 4.50) vs. Kyle Leahy (2-2, 5.21) \u00b7 Same broadcasts; note the WQAM call letters shift to 560 AM for daytime<\/p>\n

International Players to Watch (Both Rosters)<\/p>\n

Cardinals: Ivan Herrera ?? (Panama City), Jos\u00e9 Ferm\u00edn ?? (Puerto Plata, DR), Pedro Pag\u00e9s ?? (Maracay, Venezuela), Yohel Pozo ?? (Maracaibo, Venezuela), Ram\u00f3n Ur\u00edas ?? (Culiac\u00e1n, Mexico)<\/p>\n

Marlins: Sandy Alc\u00e1ntara ?? (Dominican Republic, not pitching this series), Eury P\u00e9rez ?? (Dominican Republic), Agust\u00edn Ram\u00edrez ?? (Dominican Republic), Otto Lopez ?? (Dominican Republic), Heriberto Hern\u00e1ndez ?? (Dominican Republic), Liam Hicks ?? (Canada), Owen Caissie ?? (Canada), Leo Jim\u00e9nez ?? (Panama), Javier Sanoja ?? (Venezuela), Michael Petersen ?? (Great Britain), Xavier Edwards (Mexico\/USA dual)<\/p>\n

Miami Files \u00b7 Series Preview \u00b7 World Baseball Network \u00b7 Baseball Without Borders<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There\u2019s a version of this series that doesn\u2019t matter at all. Two teams in the middle of April,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":679532,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2403],"tags":[5,160,4,673,67,4311,4310],"class_list":{"0":"post-679531","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-st-louis-cardinals","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-cardinals","10":"tag-mlb","11":"tag-st-louis","12":"tag-st-louis-cardinals","13":"tag-stlouis","14":"tag-stlouiscardinals"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116434487306303215","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679531","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=679531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/679531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/679532"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=679531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=679531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=679531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}