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Ryan Helsley
The National League leader in saves will have a spot in the All-Star game in Texas. Ryan Helsley has started to return to his 2022 form and looks to be a lock for the Midsummer Classic. Armed with one of the best fastballs in the majors, Helsley also leads the National League in Games Finished.
As the Cardinals entered May, Helsley re-emerged after an injury-riddled 2023 season. His performance led him to be named NL Relief Pitcher of the Month by MLB.com. Here is what Shanthi Sepe-Chepuru said about the Cardinals closer:
Helsley missed about half of the 2023 season with a right forearm strain, but he's gotten right back at it in 2024. The 29-year-old put in a lot of work for the Cards in April -- his 16 appearances were tied for the most in baseball, as were his 10 saves.
Those were accompanied by a sparkling 1.69 ERA and 9.5 strikeout-to-walk ratio (19 strikeouts, two walks). Not to be outdone, he also returned with his characteristic high-octane fastball, which has averaged 99.3 mph this season.
In 2022, Helsley split closer duties with Giovanny Gallegos and finished with nineteen saves, while Gallegos had fourteen. Now established as the closer for the Cardinals, Helsley is poised to smash through that career-high 19 saves, as the flamethrower already collected eighteen saves entering May 31st. Seven of those saves have come since the Cardinal's win on May 12th in Milwaukee and are critical to this team's current hot stretch.
If the St. Louis Cardinals want to return to the postseason, Helsley needs to continue at this pace. We are starting to see glimpses of the Helsley of 2022, and that's good news not only for the team but also for Helsley himself. Look for Helsley to come in for a relief appearance in July at the All-Star game.