ST. LOUIS -- At 31 years old, Riley O'Brien entered the 2026 season with a dearth of big league experience relative to the accolades he was about to pile up in short order.
Though his spot in the Cardinals bullpen was secure coming into Spring Training, this was really the first time he’d ever been able to say that.
Even then, the spring wasn’t ideal for O’Brien, who had to decline pitching in the World Baseball Classic for Team Korea due to a pesky calf strain. It was a disappointing way to begin what was destined to be his first full big league season.
Does being named to his first All-Star Game make up for missing out on the WBC?
“Yeah,” O’Brien deadpanned to laughter from reporters amused by his candor. “I’d say so, for sure. No, I was bummed to miss the WBC. But yeah, I’m definitely excited for this opportunity.”
The coming week in Philadelphia has turned into a welcome family affair for O’Brien and his kin after he was named to the National League All-Star roster Tuesday. O’Brien will be accompanied in Philly by his parents, wife and brother, all of whom are eager to partake in the festivities.
“They’re getting outfits ready for the red carpet and stuff,” O’Brien said. “They’re looking forward to it, for sure.”
As for how O’Brien himself will be dressed for the red carpet, the Cards closer was content to let his wife and mom handle the outfit.
“Usually my suits need to be tailored a little bit,” remarked the slender right-hander. “So, we’ll see. Hopefully it fits.”
O’Brien earned the spot in the bullpen as one of the NL’s pre-eminent save artisans, ranking just one save behind Mason Miller and Jhoan Duran for the league lead. Despite the bundle of saves, an All-Star Game nod wasn’t necessarily heavily on his radar much in recent weeks.
“Maybe early on in the year when things were going really well,” O’Brien acknowledged.
O’Brien opened 2026 with 13 straight appearances without allowing an earned run. From there, he encountered the doses of adversity that invariably come for any pitcher in his position.
“Start of the season, it felt like I was lights out. And then, went through a period of time where it felt like I couldn’t go out there without giving up a run,” O’Brien said. “But yeah, it feels good to come back -- I knew that wasn’t going to last forever.
“I felt like what I did at the beginning of the year was more the version of myself and the rough patch was just something I was going to get through rather than the other way around.”
Considering his limited big league experience prior to this recent star turn, O’Brien developing the ability to combat adversity in the lonely role of a big league closer has to be among the most impressive aspects of his ascension as the Cardinals' ninth-inning maestro.
“I don’t think you really know who you are until you’ve encountered that,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of the high-pressure appearances that O’Brien has frequented. “It’s easy to be consistent and have a certain personality and come in a certain way while things are going good. You really find out about yourself and about others when that’s not the case.”
A more traditional trajectory into the late-inning limelight would see a pitcher reach the big leagues and show his wares in lower-leverage situations before elevating into bullpen prominence. But before his arrival to the Cardinals from the Mariners -- O’Brien was exchanged for cash considerations in November 2023 -- he had racked up just two career MLB games.
O’Brien’s sudden assimilation into the closer role has dovetailed with his true arrival in the league itself. That has meant learning to confront the fallout of inevitable hardships of the closer role without becoming consumed by them -- while still learning who he is as a big leaguer.
“The more I kept throwing in the ninth inning, late innings in games, I just felt more comfortable,” O’Brien said. “Just settling into the role, knowing that the ninth inning is mine -- just all the prep and the mental preparation, too -- I think it’s just being comfortable in that role now.”
During his memorable first appearance as a Cardinal on Opening Day in 2024, O’Brien struck out Shohei Ohtani to tantalize the Cardinals with his raw potential. But it’s been O’Brien’s growth outside the chalk lines in the two years since that moment that has allowed the closer to soar.
“On the field stuff is pretty self-explanatory, but how you get there is, usually, what separates a lot of people,” Cardinal reliever Ryne Stanek said of his bullpen-mate. “I think he’s got a pretty good handle on what he needs to do.”