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“I want to sprint through the finish line. I want to get stronger as I go and hopefully put together a good September and our team finishes as good as we can in September as well,� Leahy said.

The 28-year-old, who has been one of the Cardinals’ key relievers in 2025, added that he wants to “put my best foot forward� each time he is called upon through the final stretch of the regular season.

His Thursday outing in a win over the Pirates was just that.

Leahy logged two scoreless innings and recorded four strikeouts while limiting the Pirates to no hits and two walks. Leahy struck one batter in the sixth inning as he stranded a runner on third base to end the frame with the game tied 1-1. He struck out the side in the seventh and notched his 100th career strikeout in the process.

Leahy’s two scoreless innings put him in a position to collect his fourth win after an RBI double by Thomas Saggese in the seventh inning and a two-run homer from Jordan Walker in the at-bat that followed lifted the Cardinals to a 4-1 win at Busch Stadium.

“That’s the goal every time I pitch: just try to put up zeroes. Glad I was able to do it,� Leahy said.

The scoreless outing marked the righty’s first scoreless appearance since Aug. 11. He lowered his ERA to 3.03 and pushed his innings total to 71 1/3 through 52 appearances. Leahy has received the largest share of the bullpen’s innings this year. The reliever with the next-closest innings total is JoJo Romero, who has totaled 48 in 53 appearances.

To monitor the right-hander’s workload, the Cardinals have looked to give Leahy enough days of rest in between outings, especially if he provides multiple innings as he did Thursday.

“Sometimes it doesn’t work out that way, but he’s done a really nice job of going out and giving you two at a time and being really effective,� Cardinals manager Oli Marmol said.

A former starter in the minors, Leahy has been no stranger to stacking innings.

Leahy totaled 76 2/3 innings of relief a season ago as he bounced between the majors and Class AAA and surpassed 80 innings in 2023 after he reached 144 2/3 innings while primarily starting in Class AA. Nearing the final month of his first full regular season in the majors, he wants to continue the stability he’s provided this year.

“This is where I want to be. This is what we live for. I don’t want the season to end. I want to keep going, and I want to keep getting better and, like I said, just put a good month together,� Leahy said.

Arenado set for reevaluation

Third baseman Nolan Arenado is set to return to St. Louis “over the next week� and be reevaluated by team doctors to determine the next steps in his recovery from a right shoulder strain.

Since landing on the injured list Aug. 1, Arenado has done his rehab at the Cardinals’ complex in Jupiter, Florida. He’s progressed to taking swings, throwing and going through baseball activities on back-to-back days.

“We talked this morning. He’s feeling good,� Marmol said.

How Arenado progresses in the next week could determine his timeline to begin a rehab assignment.

King feels back injury won’t end season

Already back on the injured list after coming off it Sunday, left-hander John King said Thursday he believes the mid-back strain that landed him on the 15-day IL Wednesday wouldn’t sideline him through the rest of the season.

After missing over three weeks with a left oblique strain, King felt the back pain while playing catch and throwing off a pitcher’s mound Monday lingered into Tuesday morning, leading to his IL placement the next day.

King has been prescribed rest and was to learn more Thursday on what his next steps would be.

The lefty said he’s dealt with discomfort in his back, including spasms, since 2022 and has managed it to keep himself off the IL. King, whose current IL stint is his first for a back injury, described his mid-back strain as a nerve or back injury rather than a muscle strain based on the MRIs he’s undergone.

“It showed a little bit of inflammation but nothing like an oblique tear or anything like that, or a strain,� King said. “It’s more backside of my rib cage on my side, rather than on the straight side.�

Extra bases

• Victor Scott II (left ankle sprain) left St. Louis to join Class AA Springfield (Missouri) on Thursday, where he is set to go through pregame activities before potentially playing in a rehab game Friday.
• Right-hander Andre Pallante is slated to remain on turn in the starting rotation, Marmol said. Pallante is listed as the Cardinals’ probable starter for Sunday’s series finale in Cincinnati.
• Top prospect JJ Wetherholt produced a three-hit game Wednesday for Class AAA Memphis to raise his batting average in Class AAA to .336 over 33 games for the Redbirds. The multi-hit game was Wetherholt’s fourth multi-hit performance in his previous five games and his 32nd multi-hit game this season.