Cardinals: 3 untouchable players in a Juan Soto trade
By Eric Treuden
2. Closer Ryan Helsley
Ryan Helsley is 28 years old but seems to be just now hitting his stride at the major league level. In what is his fourth season in the big leagues, Helsley has unlocked a whole new version of himself, pitching his way to his first-career All-Star Game selection.
Through 31 games and 39 innings, Helsley is 5-1 with a sparkling 0.69 ERA and eight saves along the way. The breakout hurler has 57 strikeouts and just 12 walks this season and an even more impressive one home run allowed so far.
He regularly hits high-90s with his fastball and throws a wipeout slider that hits 90mph. His curveball comes in over 10mph slower than his slider and pairs with the slider to make a deadly combo. Perhaps most valuable about a pitcher of Helsley’s stature, is the fact that he’s under team control for a long time still, as he is not set to become a free agent until the 2026 season.
In all regards, Helsley has emerged this year as everything the Cardinals needed out of Giovanny Gallegos, Génesis Cabrera and Alex Reyes in recent years. He’s a flamethrower that has shown that he has what it takes to succeed in high-leverage situations and is a piece the Cardinals should try to hold on to, although the Nationals will surely do what they can to swipe the hurler from St. Louis.