The St. Louis Cardinals have made it very clear via the actions they've taken this offseason that winning isn't the main goal for 2026.

The Cardinals are predicted to have an over/under win total of 70 1/2 wins this upcoming season, according to FanDuel. The win total is in large part due to the organization trying to build for the future.

In the last year, dating back to the 2025 trade deadline, St. Louis has traded third baseman Nolan Arenado, catcher/first baseman Willson Contreras, closer Ryan Helsley and starting pitcher Sonny Gray.

In that respect, the Cardinals have done exactly what they've set out to do in rebuilding the franchise and have gained assets for the future. But not everyone is on board with St. Louis' plan.

In a recent episode of ESPN's Baseball Tonight podcast, ESPN analyst Tim Kurkjian named the Cardinals as the biggest loser of the offseason.

"We've mentioned the Cardinals because in St. Louis, you can't just go into a season with no chance to win," Kurkjian said on the podcast. "But that's essentially what the Cardinals are doing and looking to do with the trades that they've made and (maybe make) if Donovan moves. For lack of a better one, I'm gonna say the Cardinals. Not because what they did was a terrible thing, but doing that in St. Louis usually doesn't work. Those fans there are so good. They're so sophisticated. You can't fool them with what you're trying to do."

St. Louis will likely make more moves from now to the '26 trade deadline.

Cardinals 2025 All-Star second baseman Brendan Donovan and left-handed reliever JoJo Romero have also been floated out in trade rumors.

"We aren’t prioritizing short-term success over what needs to happen in the long term, but my mindset is that you’re never going to stop trying to win and in some ways you’ll always assess where you are by the standings," St. Louis president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said in a story written by John Denton for MLB.com on Jan. 17. "That’s not going to change, but we can’t let that distract us from where we need to go."

To Kurkjian's point, if St. Louis finishes in last place in '26, it would be the first time the organization has finished last place twice in a four-season stretch since 1907-08, which likely wouldn't go over well with fans.

But, if the Cardinals build a team capable of being competitive over several seasons, many fans would likely be fine for intentional seasons of poor play rather than several unintentional years of mediocrity. 

Remember to join our CARDINALS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other CARDINALS fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!