Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Dealt with early-season toe injury
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Helsley dealt with a toe injury on his right foot early in the season that required an uncomfortable insert in his cleat, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
The toe issue -- which first cropped up late in spring training -- threw off Helsley's delivery, resulting in less velocity and command. Helsley finished April having allowed four runs with a 10:8 K:BB over 10 innings. The 30-year-old suffered a third straight blown save Monday against the Blue Jays, but Helsley said he feels "great" now, and his velocity is back up, giving him confidence he can bounce back.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Blows another save
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Helsley blew a save against the Blue Jays on Monday, allowing one run on two hits while striking out two batters over one inning.
Helsley inherited a one-run lead when he entered in the ninth inning, but he soon gave up the advantage on a Jonatan Clase solo homer with one out. The righty reliever recovered to retire two of the next three batters and send the game into an extra frame, but the long ball he surrendered was costly, as Toronto emerged with the win. This was the third straight blown save for Helsley, who has given up exactly one run and two hits in each of the three outings. He's already blown five saves in 18 chances this season, exceeding the number of blown saves (four) he recorded over 53 opportunities last year.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Nabs win after another blown save
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Helsley (3-0) blew the save but picked up the win in Saturday's 2-1 victory over the Dodgers, allowing one run on two hits while striking out three in the ninth inning.
Called in to complete a 1-0 shutout in the top of the ninth, the Cardinals closer instead gave up back-to-back singles to Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts, then uncorked a wild pitch to bring home the tying run. Helsley then fell into the victory when Ben Casparius failed to record an out in the bottom of the ninth for the Dodgers. It was the second straight blown save for Helsley and his fourth of the year in 17 opportunities, and through 23 innings he carries a 3.52 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 26:12 K:BB.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Takes third blown save
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Helsley allowed a run on two hits and a walk to take a blown save in a 6-5 extra-inning win over the Royals in Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader.
Helsley converted all nine of his save chances in May, allowing three runs over 11 innings with a 13:3 K:BB for the month. He struggled in his first appearance of June on Thursday after four days without taking the mound. Helsley has been far from elite this year, but he's still finding success with 13 of 16 save chances converted so far. He's added a 3.27 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 23:12 K:BB across 22 innings. His 4.9 BB/9 is well above the 3.1 he posted last year, which largely explains his occasional struggles with run prevention in 2025.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Locks down 13th save
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Helsley picked up the save Saturday against the Rangers. He allowed no hits or walks while striking out two over a perfect inning.
Helsley was rock solid Saturday, tossing a clean ninth inning to seal a victory for the Cardinals. The hard-throwing right-hander has converted nine consecutive save opportunities, delivering a scoreless frame in eight of them. On the year, the 30-year-old has a 3.00 ERA and 1.43 WHIP across 21 innings.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Converts 12th save
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Helsley allowed two hits in a scoreless ninth inning to earn his 12th save in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Orioles. He did not strike out or walk a batter
Helsley faced the top of the Orioles' order and worked around two singles to secure the victory. The 30-year-old has converted all eight of his save chances in May, though he's allowed at least one hit in eight of 10 appearances this month. On the year, he's 12-for-14 in save opportunities and owns a 3.15 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 21:11 K:BB across 20 innings.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Notches 11th save
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Helsley allowed a hit and struck out two batters over one inning while earning a save against the Orioles on Tuesday.
Helsley worked around a two-out single by Ramon Urias to finish off the 7-4 victory. It was Helsley's seventh straight save conversion, and he's now 11-for-13 on the year. He lowered his ERA to 3.32 with a 21:11 K:BB through 19 frames. Helsley has posted a 3.00 ERA with seven saves in May.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Secures win Saturday
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Helsley (2-0) was credited with the win in Saturday's 6-5 victory over the Diamondbacks, giving up a hit and a walk while striking out two in a scoreless ninth inning.
The official scorer elected to give Helsley the win and not the save, despite the fact that he entered the game with the Cardinals ahead by a run, after both Kyle Leahy and Steven Matz were ineffective in the eighth trying to protect a 4-1 lead. Helsley hasn't been as sharp in 2025 as he was last season, and he sports a 3.50 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 19:11 K:BB through 18 innings while converting 10 of 12 save chances.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Holds on for 10th save
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Helsley registered the save in Friday's 4-3 win over Arizona after allowing two runs on two hits and no walks in the ninth inning. He struck out one.
It wasn't easy for Helsley, who hung a curveball in the strike zone that left the yard via a two-run homer by Gabriel Moreno. The hard-throwing right-hander was still able to hold on and preserve the victory, successfully converting his 10th save in 12 opportunities on the campaign. Helsley's 1.47 WHIP is a bit concerning, but he does have a respectable 3.71 ERA and 17:10 K:BB over 17 frames and remains St. Louis' go-to weapon in the ninth inning.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Notches ninth save
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Helsley picked up the save Saturday against the Royals. He didn't allow a baserunner or record a strikeout in a scoreless ninth inning.
Helsley retired the side in order on 12 pitches as he delivered his sixth straight scoreless outing to tally his ninth save of the campaign. The right-hander's 1.44 WHIP is still a bit high, but overall he's been effective early in 2025 with a 2.81 ERA and 16:10 K:BB over 16 innings.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Fans two for save
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Helsley struck out two batters in a perfect inning to earn a save against Philadelphia on Monday.
Helsley threw nine of 13 pitches for strikes to retire the Phillies' 8-9-1 hitters in order and close out the 3-2 win. He's converted eight of his 10 save chances this season, including four straight. He coughed up at least one run in back-to-back outings April 26 and May 2, but has since turned in four consecutive scoreless innings. Helsley owns a 3.00 ERA with a 16:10 K:BB through 15 frames.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Escapes with seventh save
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Helsley gave up a hit and walked two batters in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his seventh save of the season in a 4-2 win over the Nationals.
After retiring the first two batters in the ninth, Helsley loaded the bases but was able to escape the jam by getting CJ Abrams to fly out. The Cardinals closer has been putting plenty of traffic on the basepaths this year, leading to two blown saves in nine chances along with a 3.21 ERA, 1.64 WHIP and 14:10 K:BB through 14 innings -- numbers which represent a significant step back from his dazzling 2024 campaign.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Notches sixth save
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Helsley earned a save against the Pirates on Monday, allowing two hits and striking out two batters in one scoreless inning.
Helsley entered in the ninth frame with St. Louis up by three runs, and he allowed the tying run to come up to the plate by allowing two singles. However, the veteran right-hander got Bryan Reynolds to strike out looking to escape the threat and notch the save. Helsley had just three saves and two blown saves in April, but he's off to a nice beginning of May with two saves through the first five days of the month.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Locks down save in Game 1
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Helsley allowed a hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in a 6-5 win over the Mets in Game 1 of Sunday's doubleheader.
The Mets pulled within a run in the eighth inning, but Helsley made sure their comeback fell short in the ninth. He had allowed three runs over his last two innings, including a blown save in his outing versus the Brewers on April 26. Helsley hasn't been at his best to begin 2025, pitching to a 3.75 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 11:8 K:BB while converting five of seven save chances this season. He was 49-for-53 in save chances in 2024, but for now, he is not being challenged for the closer role.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Blows save, picks up win
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Helsley (1-0) blew the save but collected the win Saturday against the Brewers. He allowed two runs on two hits and no walks with no strikeouts over an inning.
The St. Louis closer has allowed runs in just two appearances this season, both of which were his only blown saves. Helsley conceded a two-run homer to Jackson Chourio in the ninth before being bailed out by a walk-off shot from Nolan Arenado in the bottom of the frame. Despite sporting a respectable 3.60 ERA through his first 10 innings, Helsley has struggled with free passes (7.2 BB/9), which has led to a 4.73 FIP.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Notches fourth save
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Helsley earned the save in Friday's 3-2 win over the Brewers, allowing one hit in a scoreless ninth inning. He did not record a strikeout or a walk.
Helsley was brought in for the ninth inning to preserve a one-run lead. He got around an Isaac Collins leadoff single by inducing a double play, and Helsley secured the save after Caleb Durbin lined out to center field. Helsley has recorded a save in three of his last four outings and has a 2.00 ERA and 1.56 WHIP over nine innings this season.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Notches third save
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Helsley earned the save in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Astros, working around a walk in a scoreless ninth inning.
Helsley has held opponents scoreless in six of his seven appearances this season while improving to 3-for-4 in save chances after leading the league with 49 saves in 2024. His ERA is down to 2.57, with a 1.57 WHIP and 9:6 K:BB through seven innings to start the campaign.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Quickly secures second save
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Helsley earned the save after allowing one hit in a scoreless ninth inning Friday against the Phillies.
Trea Turner brought the possible tying run to the plate with a leadoff single, but Helsley quickly put out the next three batters he faced on just six pitches to protect a 2-0 victory. The hard-throwing right-hander has blown one save and has struggled with his control to begin the season, posting a 1.67 WHIP and 9:5 K:BB over six frames, but Helsley has given up just two runs and remains St. Louis' go-to weapon in save situations.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Struggles with command
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Helsley allowed two runs on a hit and four walks in one inning during Game 1 of Sunday's doubleheader against Boston. He struck out two and was charged with a blown save in the loss.
Helsley made his first appearance since April 1 and saw his first save chance since March 27. He threw just 16 of 37 pitches for strikes and failed to protect the 4-2 lead. St. Louis would go on to lose in the 10th inning. Helsley hadn't walked a batter this season through three innings, and Sunday was his first time walking multiple batters in an outing since June 24, 2024. His ERA jumped to 4.50, but he maintains a firm grasp on the Cardinals' closer role.
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Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Impressive in first save chance
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Helsley struck out the side and allowed one hit in a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save Thursday against the Twins.
Helsley was called upon to protect a two-run lead and looked overpowering by touching 101 mph with his fastball to collect his first save of the season. He did surrender a two-out double to Harrison Bader to make things interesting, but Helsley proceeded to strike out Matt Wallner on four pitches to end the game. Helsley could be subject to trade rumors during the summer months, but he should be an elite closing option for the foreseeable future.
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