Cardinals place right-hander Jack Flaherty on 10-day IL with oblique strain

The St. Louis Cardinals placed right-hander Jack Flaherty on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a left oblique strain that manager Mike Shildt called a "real strain/tear," according to ESPN.

Flaherty was examined after leaving Monday's start against the Los Angeles Dodgers with left side tightness. Although he left early, he struck out nine batters in the 9-4 loss. 

Shildt initially said removing Flaherty from the game was "more just to be safe and get it checked out." The injury is worse than initially feared. 

Flaherty is one of the Cardinals' best pitchers. The 25-year-old is 8-1 with a 2.90 ERA, 1.032 WHIP and 67 strikeouts in 62 innings. 

The California native's best season came in 2019 when he finished fourth in Cy Young voting and 13th in MVP voting. He was drafted by the Cardinals in 2014 and has been in the big leagues since 2017.