The St. Louis Cardinals have gotten off to a solid start, considering this season was set with no expectations and was positioned to be the start of a rebuild. While the roster overhaul played out in the winter, the ones that remain have put on a show, some with their spot in the Cardinals’ plans for the future on the line. Jordan Walker has gotten off to a hot start, hitting .295 with five home runs on the fresh campaign, but while Walker and the Cardinals' offense have gotten off to a great start, their bullpen has reared its ugly head.

At the trade deadline last season, the Cardinals moved on from pieces of their bullpen that were headed to free agency at the trade deadline, and did little to mask the holes in the offseason. Ryne Stanek and George Soriano were the only additions to the Cardinals' bullpen this winter, and so far, Stanek has struggled in his six appearances with a 6.35 ERA, and Soriano holds a 3.00 ERA while leaving 71.4% of runners on base.

Three returning pieces to the Cardinals bullpen have been excellent thus far, with Riley O’Brien, who is seemingly turning into the de facto closer in St. Louis, and Jo Jo Romero both holding a 0.00 ERA in six appearances each. Gordon Graceffo joins the successful portion of the returning cast with a 1.93 ERA, but is walking the most hitters on the team.

Matt Svanson, Matthew Pushard, Chris Roycroft, and Justin Bruihl round out the rest of the Cardinals' relief appearances this season, and none of them have jumped out as being a guy who can get outs when the team needs it. Roycroft has already been reassigned to Memphis with Pushard on the injured list.

Svanson, who was thought to compete for the closing job based on last season's performance, has been abysmal to start the year. With five appearances, he boasts a 15.00 ERA. If Svanson can stabilize and take back control on the mound, he would likely see more time out of the Cardinals' bullpen, as nobody else has stepped up in the middle of the game for the Redbirds.

There is a potential option on the horizon: Hunter Dobbins, who is returning from a torn ACL, could create two routes the Cardinals can take. The first is to place Dobbins in the bullpen and use him in the middle innings to get to the back end of the bullpen. The other is to move Kyle Leahy, whose first two starts have not gone as envisioned for St. Louis, back into the bullpen where he thrived last season. Either route could be an option depending on the state of the Cardinals' bullpen upon Dobbins’ return.

One thing is certain in St. Louis: if the Cardinals' bullpen does not improve, the welcome surprise of an electric offense could be a waste. The Cardinals have scored five or more runs in seven games this season, and while the bullpen did not allow a run against the New York Mets, they have lost multiple games due to their bullpen not being able to hold a lead or keep the game close enough for the Cardiac Cards to climb back in it.