Cardinals' Lefty Reliever Thrived While Inducing Weak Contact, Grounders

Growth, as St. Louis Cardinals’ manager Oliver Marmol pointed out repeatedly over the final month of the 2026 season, can be measured in a variety of ways.

One way, of course, is the standings – an area where the Cardinals fell back a win from 2025 (78-84) to 2026 (77-85), one that was somewhat expected with the widespread youth on the roster and the club selling off veteran pitchers JoJo Romero and Dustin May for prospects at the MLB Trade Deadline.

Instead, the Cardinals tried to evaluate areas of growth in non-traditional ways in a non-traditional season in St. Louis.

Growth was having a defined core group of players – Alec Burleson, Jordan Walker, JJ Wetherholt, Ivan Herrera, Masyn Winn, Michael McGreevy, Kyle Leahy and Riley O’Brien – take major steps in their games and evolve into building blocks.

Growth was seeing Leo Bernal, Joshua Baez, Quinn Mathews, Cooper Hjerpe and Nathan Church live up to the hype that followed them from the Minor Leagues and show signs they can be depended on going forward.

Growth was Andre Pallante and Gordon Graceffo shaking off the struggles of 2025 and showing the fortitude to change the trajectory of their careers.

Growth even showed up in journeymen relievers Justin Bruihl and George Soriano setting career highs and pitching better than they have in their careers.

“This is a really young group, but there’s been a lot of progress with so many of these guys,” Marmol said. “You can go up and down the lineup and you see growth from so many of our guys. Then, go to the rotation and what McGreevy, Pallante and Leahy did this season, and the bullpen as well. Our staff has really enjoyed pouring into that group. They are hungry for information and they want to be coaches, so that’s made it a lot of fun.”

However, as president of baseball operation Chaim Bloom reminds, the Cardinals still have major gulfs between them and MLB’s top teams. The National League champion Brewers, after all, finished 26 games ahead of St. Louis and battered the Cards in 11 of 13 head-to-head meetings. Much more growth is needed for the Cards to better navigate the difference the rebuilding and contending.

With growth being the focus, let’s look back at the performances by individual players in the 2026 season and how they will figure into the Cards’ plans going forward in 2027 and beyond:  

Player name: Justin Bruihl

Age: 29

How acquired: Acquired by Cardinals in a trade with the Cleveland Guardians for cash on Jan. 6, 2026

2026 statistics: 73 games, 1-1, 3.59 ERA, 77 2/3 IP, 11 holds, 0 for 2 in save opportunities, 75 hits, 31 earned runs, four homers allowed, 53 strikeouts, 28 walks, .253 batting average allowed

Key numbers: Bruihl got off to a slow start, but he ultimately came on strong as the season progressed and made 73 appearances – the most by a Cardinals left-handed reliever since Andrew Miller appeared in 73 games in 2019.

Looking back to 2026: Bruihl, who pitched previously for the Dodgers, Rockies, Pirates and Blue Jays, struggled badly with his control early in the season and it showed in April when he appeared in 15 games and had a 5.27 ERA. However, he made great strides as the season went along and evolved into an elite reliever. Bruihl’s deceptive pitch mix allowed him to excel in average exit velocity (88th percentile), barrel rate (79th percentile) and hard-hit rate (77th percentile). Also, Bruihl did a good job of keeping foes on the ground by inducing a 51.8 percent ground ball rate (89th percentile). Naturally, the crafty left-hander was better against left-handed hitters (.230 batting average, two homers) than right-handed hitters (.281 batting average, two homers). Bruihl was at his best the Cardinals needed him most in midseason. He posted a 1.64 ERA in eight appearances in June, a 2.87 ERA in July when fellow lefty JoJo Romero went out with an appendicitis and a 2.63 ERA in August after Romero was traded to the Brewers.   

Looking forward to 2027: Bruihl evolved into a pleasant surprise for the Cardinals, and he became something of a security blanket to manager Oliver Marmol with how often he was available. His 73 appearances were the most by a Cardinals lefty in seven years, and he appeared in double-digit games in five of the six full months of the season.    

Denton’s analysis: One of the top abilities for a reliever is availability, and Bruihl prided himself on being available to the Cardinals almost every night. He appeared in two games in March, 15 games in April, 11 games in May, eight in June, 12 in July, 12 in August and 13 in September. His 3.59 ERA was his lowest since his rookie year in 2021 when he pitched for the Dodgers. Bruihl’s ability to induce weak contact and keep the ball on the ground are valuable tools for any reliever and he should be a key piece of the bullpen going forward in 2027.