Feliz Trying to Build Off Career Year in 2020
With all of the bullpen struggles the 2019 Pittsburgh Pirates had, one pitcher that flew under the radar was Michael Feliz. He quietly had a career-year and helped bring some good fortune back to his name in the eyes of Pirates fans.
After starting the year at Triple-A Indianapolis, Feliz was up and down trough the first two months of the season, but stuck with the Major League roster from June on. He appeared in 58 games for the Bucs pitching to a 3.99 ERA in 56.1 innings of work while walking 27 and striking out 73. His 3.99 ERA was 44 points lower than his previous low and was a good sign for Feliz's future in Pittsburgh.
Feliz came to the Pirates on a sour note coming over as part of the deal that sent Gerrit Cole to the Houston Astros. Feliz would make the opening day roster that year and didn't help his cause as he went 1-2 with a 5.66 ERA in 47.2 innings of work. Many questioned if the Pirates would bring Feliz back in 2019 or just cut their losses from the Cole trade.
Looking ahead to 2020, Feliz is a serious contender for a spot in the 2020 bullpen and, thanks to a few injuries, might have the fast track to one of the middle relief spots. If he can continue his numbers from 2019, the Pirates bullpen has a chance to shorten games with the combination of Feliz, Nick Burdi, Kyle Crick, and Keona Kela.
The key to Feliz's success was going back to a three-pitch arsenal as opposed to the four-pitch arsenal he was using two years ago. He eliminated a sinker, which was ineffective in 2018, and went back to using the fastball as his primary pitch. Feliz used the fastball 73.4% of the time in 2019 and generated 40 strikeouts from the pitch.
Feliz went with the fastball more against left-handers throwing it 320 more times to lefties than his next closest pitch. He was able to work it to both sides of the plate but worked it on the inside part of the plate to left-handers. When he was facing righties, he would turn more to his slider, a pitch he threw 156 times to right-handed batters, and generated 32 strikeouts from last season.
Feliz worked the slider down and in to right handed batters after using his high-powered fastball to get ahead in the count. Opponents hit just .183 against the slider and picked up only six extra base hits. Feliz used the slider two percent less than he did in 2018, but was able to use it more efficiently since he didn't have to worry about his sinker.
However, like so many other Pirates pitchers last year, Feliz was hurt by the long ball giving up 11 home runs in 56.1 innings of work. It was the most home runs Feliz has given up in his career and was good for a career-high 1.76 HR/9. Feliz's worst stretch of the season came from August 24th to August 29th when he gave up a home run in three consecutive outings.
If Feliz wants to solidify his future, he is going to have to limit the amount of home runs he gives up. However, if last season is any indication, that may be harder to do since Feliz gave up a hard hit percentage of 32.8 percent, three points higher than League average. He was also barreled up 10.9% of the time meaning when batters were hitting his pitches they were getting the barrel of the bat on the ball and many of those went over the wall.
Feliz has the potential to have a strong season in 2020 but the key is for him to limit how many times he gets barreled up. As one of a few players with World Series experience on the team, Feliz knows what it takes to not only make it to the big dance but win it as well. Hopefully he can pass that experience to the rest of the team.
Prediction: 3.56 ERA 54.1 IP 71 strikeouts
I think Feliz will make Manager Derek Shelton's opening day roster and pencil into the middle of the Pirates bullpen. He should start the season working in non high-leverage situations and, if he shows success, he can transition to a late game reliever. Feliz is one of my dark horses for the Pirates in 2020 because if he can have a strong season, it will help the bullpen immensly and shorten games for the opposing team.
As of now, the season is expected to begin somewhere around May 25th. Until then, we will continue to look at the men who make up this year's team and their contributions in 2020
Comments
Post a Comment