Max Meyer is back for Marlins vs Cardinals, and he is set to start Friday night in St. Louis after the Miami Marlins reactivated him from the bereavement list. Michael McGreevy will start for the St. Louis Cardinals in the opener, the only game in the series with both starters announced.
Max Meyer and Michael McGreevy
The Marlins needed Meyer immediately. Since the start of June, he has a 2.31 ERA with 28 strikeouts and 9 walks over 4 starts, a stretch that gives Miami a defined arm for the series opener while the rest of the rotation waits.
McGreevy gives the Cardinals their Friday answer after the schedule shifted. The Cardinals were lined up to have Dustin May on the mound Friday night before a Thursday rainout bumped their rotation back, moving May to Saturday night and Andre Pallante to Sunday.
Thursday rainout in St. Louis
That change makes Friday the clearest checkpoint in a weekend series that is already split by timing. The Cardinals will host the Miami Marlins in St. Louis, and only the first game has both sides settled.
For the Cardinals, the rainout did more than delay one start. It pushed the rest of the pitching plan back a night, leaving Saturday night for May and Sunday for Pallante, while the Marlins had not released their Saturday and Sunday starters as of the series opener.
Miami Marlins for Saturday and Sunday
Ryan Gusto was believed to be the Marlins’ Saturday night starter, and Tyler Phillips was believed to be the Sunday starter. Those names matter because the opener is the only fully mapped matchup, and the rest of the series still depends on how Miami lines up after Meyer’s return.
The timing also fits the shape of the season for both clubs. The Marlins had won 5 of their last 7 games, while the Cardinals had lost 5 of their last 7, and both teams were 7 games out in their respective divisions.
Miami’s lineup support has come from Xavier Edwards, Otto Lopez, and Liam Hicks. Edwards was batting.293 with 6 home runs and an.799 OPS, Lopez was at.340 with 6 home runs and an.857 OPS, and Hicks led the Marlins with 13 home runs, a.278 batting average, and 53 RBI's.
Sandy Alcantara also stayed part of Miami’s recent form, with a 5-2 record and a 4.66 ERA over his last 7 starts. His last start came Tuesday, June 23, against the Texas Rangers, giving the Marlins another reference point for how the rotation has held up before Meyer takes the ball Friday night.
For readers following the series, the practical detail is simple: the opener is set, the Cardinals’ rotation has already moved because of the Thursday rainout, and Miami still has two pitching slots to sort out around Meyer’s return. That leaves Friday night as the only fully identified starting matchup heading into the weekend at Busch Stadium.
