Offseason Questions: Who is the Pirates Closer in 2021?
In recent history, the Pittsburgh Pirates have always had a good closer to come in and shut down the opposition. It started in the early 2000s with Jose Mesa and has continued with Matt Capps, Jason Grilli, Joel Hanrahan, Mark Melancon, and even Felipe Vazquez (before all the legal trouble). Even entering the 2020 season, the Pirates had a pretty good idea that Keone Kela was going to be there closer. As for 2021, there is no clear candidate to assume the role and it is going to be a position that is going to have some competition in 2021. There are several highly regarded back-end relievers on the roster, but manager Derek Shelton is going to have to find out which ones thrive in the ninth inning.
At the end of the 2020 season, Richard Rodriguez assumed the closer's role and did a fairly decent job. He looks to be the front runner for 2021, but one slip-up could open the door for someone else to get a shot in the ninth inning. Not only does he have some competition at the Major League level to worry about, but the Pirates also have some up and coming prospects who are knocking at the Pirates bullpen door. Today, we take a look at all of the pitchers who are capable of stepping into this closer's role to see which one might have what it takes to be closing games for Pittsburgh in 2021.
RHP: Richard Rodriguez
Before we take a look at his competition for the role, let's look at Rodriguez as the option for 2021. He is coming off one of his best seasons in the Major Leagues going 3-2 with a 2.70 ERA while converting four of five save opportunities in 24 games pitched. He was susceptible to the home run early in the season, giving up three in his first 13 appearances, but after that, he was almost unhittable. Opponents hit just .179 against him during the season and he had a career-high strikeout rate of 36.5%. He also showed the best control of his career walking just five batters, and allowing his mid-90s fastball to blow by hitters.
However, Rodriguez's most impressive work came in the month of September where he wasn't scored upon in 10 straight outings. During that time, he pitched 9.2 innings of work and allowed just six hits while striking out 16 batters. He allowed an opponent batting average of just .171 during that month and converted both of his save opportunities. In total, Rodriguez has thrown 10.2 consecutive scoreless innings entering the 2021 season, and his experience in the closer's role in 2020 seems to give him the fast track to the role in 2021. If he can continue to pitch lights out like he did last season, it seems to be his position to lose.
RHP: Michael Feliz
Aside from Rodriguez, the only other reliever on the Pirates roster with closer experience is Michael Feliz. The problem is, in eight career save opportunities, Feliz has failed to convert his first Major League save. After an injury-plagued 2020 season that saw him pitch in just three games, Feliz is looking to come back strong and be a force to be reckoned with in the Pirates bullpen. He had his best MLB season with the Pirates in 2019 when he appeared in 58 games and went 4-4 with a 3.99 ERA in 56.1 innings of work. Feliz allowed just a .212 opponent batting average that season and struck out 73 batters, which was second-most in his career.
The problem with Feliz is mainly in his control and it has gotten him into trouble in the past. In 2019, Feliz walked just over 11% of the batters he faced and just had trouble locating the ball during the season. This led to him having to throw some pitches down the middle, and he ended up getting burned. He allowed a career-high 11 home runs that season that accounted for over half of the extra-base hits he allowed all year. Feliz didn't really get a chance to improve in 2020 because of the pandemic and the fact that he dealt with a right forearm strain for most of the season. He is back and fully healthy in 2021 looking to prove he can be a reliable back-end option in the Bucs bullpen.
RHP Geoff Hartlieb
Geoff Hartlieb cracked the Opening Day Roster for the first time in his career in 2021 and, at one point and time was one of Pittsburgh's top relievers. Through September 11th, Hartlieb was pitching to a team-leading 1.86 ERA and had only allowed four runs in his first 15 innings of work. He hit a little bit of a rough patch at the end of the season but still ended the year going 1-0 with a 3.63 ERA in 21 games pitched. His control was an issue as he walked just over 18% of the batters he faced, but was able to get out of those situations with an opponent batting average of just .205. He didn't allow much hard contact throughout the season, with a hard-hit percentage of 31.8% and he kept the ball low in the zone rolling 17 double plays.
2020 was a year that allowed Hartlieb to prove that he had what it took to be a Big League reliever. With guys like Clay Holmes and Michael Feliz going on the Injured List, it allowed an opening for Hartlieb to show just what he could do. He allowed more than two earned runs in an outing only three times during the season, with his lone bad outing coming on September 18th when he allowed three earned runs without recording an out. However, 2020 was also Hartlieb's first full season in the Major Leagues and he probably will need more time before stepping into that closer's role. At just 26-years old, there is still time for Hartlieb to develop into the closer he has been groomed to be throughout his Minor League career.
RHP: Chad Kuhl
Chad Kuhl showed that his elbow is back to 100% after returning from Tommy John Surgery in 2020. The Pirates limited his innings to ease him back into gameplay, and he rewarded them going 2-3 with a 4.27 ERA in 11 games, nine starts, he features a fastball that routinely hits 97-98 mph and a mix of three off-speed pitches that all have considerable movement. While he has been a starting pitcher for his entire professional career, could a move to the bullpen make him more valuable? He has the strikeout ability setting down 44 batters in 46.1 innings of work while allowing an opponent batting average of .212.
If Kuhl did get moved to the bullpen, it would allow the Pirates to significantly limit his innings to help keep his elbow strong. Kuhl had some experience appearing out of the bullpen this season as the second half of the Brault/Kuhl Piggy Back starts. He appeared in two games as a reliever and posted a 1.80 ERA in five innings while striking out five batters. If he was moved to the closer's role, Kuhl could let it fly and wouldn't have to worry about saving himself to go deep into the ball game. However, if the Pirates were in a situation where they would need their reliever to go multiple innings, Kuhl could be the guy to stay in and get the Pirates deeper into extra-innings.
The 2021 season will be here before you know it, and the Pirates still have a lot of questions to answer before the team enters Spring Training in February. We have already seen General Manager Ben Cherrington make a flurry of moves, but there are still many big moves left on the table. We will see what direction he decides to take the team after coming off the worst record in Major League Baseball a season ago. The back-end of the bullpen has a lot of competition already, but adding pieces will only make that competition stronger moving forward. There is no doubt the Pirates will weigh all their options before deciding who will close games in 2021.
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