The St. Louis Cardinals have punted on the 2025 season after trading Ryan Helsley, Steven Matz and Phil Maton at the trade deadline, and the outlook for 2026 appears gloomy as well. The Cardinals' woes have been reflected in their attendance. Normally near the top of the major leagues in tickets sold, the Cardinals are now 18th in the major leagues in that statistic.
There are explanations abound for why attendance has fallen so dramatically, including the price of ballgames and the crime in downtown St. Louis, but as Occam's razor says, the simplest explanation is likely the correct one: The Cardinals aren't winning, so fans aren't spending their money to watch them live.