ST. LOUIS — After just two starts back following a two-and-a-half-month stint on the injured list with an oblique injury, Cardinals starting pitcher Jack Flaherty is heading back to the IL.
The Cardinals moved Flaherty to the 10-day IL on Wednesday with a right shoulder strain after he was removed from his Tuesday start against the Tigers in the third inning. Flaherty's velocity had dipped and he had allowed four earned runs to the Tigers through two innings.
"It just got less comfortable as the game went on," Flaherty said Tuesday night after he was removed. "I tried to give everything I had and ignore it. There's certain things when you're out there... most of the time you're dealing with something. Something is going on whether it's, something's sore... For me I'm mostly going to chalk things up to that. And then it just... you can only go through so much."
Flaherty said the soreness was something he and the team had been keeping an eye on heading into the start.
"I was like normal soreness and whatnot. But it ended up... It just wasn't as great as the game went on," Flaherty said.
When he's been on the mound, Flaherty has been superb for the Cardinals in 2021. Excluding his abbreviated start Tuesday night, Flaherty is 9-1 with a 2.68 ERA with 80 strikeouts in 74 innings pitched.
His frustration at the latest setback was evident in Tuesday night's post-game Zoom with members of the media.
"I'm just pissed. Mentally I'm just pissed," Flaherty said. "Physically it's fine (Flaherty's arm after the game), it's more of a throwing thing than anything. But I'm just pissed."
Pitcher Junior Fernandez was recalled in a corresponding move with Flaherty being sent to the 10-day IL.
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