Kyle

Leahy

On the plus side, Leahy struck out five batters on the night while allowing one base on balls. He served up a solo homer to Christian Walker in the second inning, then the Astros piled on three additional runs in the fourth inning. Leahy got eight swings and misses on 74 pitches, posting a CSW of 34 percent. He now holds a 6.39 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and a 14/4 K/BB ratio across 12 2/3 innings. With so much competition for the final couple of spots in the Cardinals’ rotation, he may need to improve his next time out to secure his spot.

Richard Fitts is making a bid to overtake Leahy in the rotation mix, but Leahy really helped his cause today after giving up four runs last time out. One wonders if the Cardinals might not be better off using both Fitts and Leahy in the rotation and sending Andre Pallante back to the pen.

Leahy’s velocity was down across the board, and he registered just one whiff on 22 swings while posting a 20 percent CSW. He allowed three hard-hit balls, including a home run to Konnor Griffin, but the average exit velocity against him overall was under 89 mph. Still, he had a sub-60 percent strike zone and will need to get his command in order if he wants to win a spot in the Cardinals’ rotation.

The 28-year-old right-hander punched out three batters on the afternoon and didn’t issue a walk. The only blemish on his day came on a solo home run off the bat of Jack Winkler in the second inning. Aside from that, he was brilliant. Leahy threw 18 of his 29 pitches for strikes, generating four swings and misses and posting a CSW of 34 percent. He appears to be locked into a spot in the Cardinals’ Opening Day rotation and makes for an intriguing late-round option for fantasy purposes.

The 28-year-old hurler punched out one batter on the afternoon and didn’t walk a batter. The Cardinals have toyed with the idea of shifting Leahy to the starting rotation in 2026 and if his effort on Sunday was any indication it looks like he could be up to the task. Leahy finishes the 2025 campaign with a 4-2 record, 3.07 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and an 80/28 K/BB ratio over 88 innings in 62 appearances.

The Cardinals are having Liberatore finish on a high note after he defeated the Brewers on Sunday. Kyle Leahy could get a start in game 162, though that will depend on if he’s needed out of the bullpen first. Liberatore finishes up his first full season as a starter 8-12 with a 4.21 ERA and a 122/40 K/BB in 151 2/3 innings. That he made such big gains in lefty-righty matchups is encouraging, but as a flyball pitcher with a below average strikeout rate, his ceiling still seems rather low.

O’Brien hasn’t been placed on the injured list, so that’s a positive. Still, that might come based on what the MRI reveals. JoJo Romero is worth using in most leagues with the Cardinals’ primary closing alternative down. Kyle Leahy could also be an option in deeper formats.

JoJo Romero entered in the seventh tonight and also got four outs while facing only three batters. Leahy gave up a pair of singles to start the ninth in a two-run game, but he then got an out at third on a sac bunt attempt from Will Banfield and he went on to retire Matt McLain and TJ Friedl to end the game. With Romero and Riley O’Brien both performing well, Leahy will probably remain third in line for saves in St. Louis, in part because the Cardinals like having him available to go multiple innings.

The Cardinals could have gone to JoJo Romero or Riley O’Brien after taking a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the eighth, but they chose to stick with Leahy, who has morphed into more of a long man since the deadline opened up the closer’s role. He’s pitched 6 2/3 scoreless innings over three appearances this month. We’d trust him more in the ninth than the Cardinals’ alternatives, but used like this, he might still offer some NL-only value.

O’Brien walked Max Muncy with two outs, but he then retired Alex Freeland to end the game. JoJo Romero got the win today for striking out Shohei Ohtani to end the seventh and retiring two in the eighth. Kyle Leahy, who was another candidate to close with Ryan Helsley gone, pitched 2 2/3 scoreless innings after replacing Matthew Liberatore in the fifth, striking out four along the way. Romero is probably the favorite for saves in St. Louis at the moment, but with the way Leahy is being used, O’Brien might be worth a roster spot in mixed leagues as the top alternative of Romero.