NL Wild Card Race: SF Giants chances take hit after series loss to Cardinals

The SF Giants missed a golden opportunity this past weekend as they dropped their series against the St. Louis Cardinals with two close losses on Saturday and Sunday. Their chances for the NL Wild Card took a hit as a result.

The New York Mets, the team currently in possession of the third NL Wild Card spot, lost their last two games as well. If the Giants had been able to scratch out wins the last two games, they would only be two games back with a few weeks left to go. The Mets have an advantage over the Giants which is why San Francisco cannot let chances like this fall by the wayside.

SF Giants Wild Card chances take hit after series loss to Cardinals

They are still right there and it is still a possibility that they could climb their way into the postseason, but they cannot afford to lose many more close contests going forward. This is especially true of games like the one on Saturday when Ryan Walker blew the save and coughed up a three-run lead to lose.

The Giants really do not have much margin for error so they have to be dialed in over the course of these coming weeks.

There are arguments to be made for why the team does have a legit chance to make it into the playoffs but it is just as easy to argue that they are toast and their summer struggles were just too much to overcome. They may have the help of some sort of dark magic, but it might take something even more powerful than that to get them over the top.

It is always fun to see a team make a push for the playoffs even if it ends up being too little too late. The team’s recent hot streak has made September eminently more enjoyable and interesting to watch. However, it is fair to wonder how far this team could even go if they made the playoffs. Their red-hot offense is what powered their winning streak, but if we have learned anything from the 2025 Giants it is that bats can go cold in an instant.

Their pitching situation is less than ideal as well. If they were to make the playoffs, they could have Logan Webb, Robbie Ray, and Justin Verlander take the ball which would not be too bad. That fourth starter would be a bit dicier though as they’d probably have to rely upon unproven options like Kai-Wei Teng or Carson Seymour. 

The bullpen presents another can of worms. After trading away Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval as well as losing Randy Rodríguez for the next year or longer, they have a patchwork bullpen. Ryan Walker was looking solid again until he blew the game on Saturday and beyond him there are a lot of arms who have done solid things but it is dubious whether they could be fully reliable in the playoffs.

These are problems that are irrelevant unless San Francisco makes the postseason. They still have a chance, but after losing the series to the Cardinals it is only going to be that much harder. 

More from Around the Foghorn: