Pittsburgh Pirates 2021 Previews: RHP Sean Poppen
Every year teams around the MLB end up making waiver claims as they try to add either to their Major League club or to the Minor League teams. A lot of these waiver claims end up going unheard of by fans, but there are occasionally the few that end up working well for their teams. Last season, Sam Howard was the surprise for the Pirates coming from two rough seasons in Colorado and becoming a top performer in the bullpen. In one of the first moves of the 2020-2021 off-season, the Pirates were trying to duplicate that success when they claimed Sean Poppen off waivers from the Minnesota Twins. Poppen only has ten games of Major League experience under his belt but has shown to be a mid-level starter in the Minor Leagues.
Last season, he worked out of the Minnesota Twins alternate training site, before being called to the Big Leagues on August 2nd. He bounced around between the Majors and the alternate site but managed to make six appearances out of the bullpen. He ended up throwing 7.2 innings of work and posted a 4.70 ERA and improving on his numbers from his 2019 debut. However, he is looking to get back to the starting rotation and will have a chance to do that down in Triple-A with the Pirates. All of his pitches have movement, and deception is his biggest factor on the mound. He looks to use that deception to become a mainstay on the Major League roster at some point this season.
An Up And Down 2020
To say that Poppen had an up and down season in 2020 is an understatement. In total, he made five different trips between the alternate training site and the Big League club as a member of the bullpen. In total, Poppen finished the year appearing in six games, 7.1 innings, and posting a 4.70 ERA. He showed good strikeout ability, setting down 10 batters, but his control could use some work as he walked four. With so much movement on his pitches, they have a tendency to get away from him from time to time. That has been the biggest factor that has kept him in the Minor Leagues so far, but he has shown improvement in the control department.
He made his season debut with the Twins on August 7th against the Kansas City Royals and got things started on the right foot. He pitched a scoreless inning allowing two hits while striking out a batter in his season debut. He followed that up the next day allowing one run over two innings of work while walking two and striking out four of the eight batters he would end up facing. However, it wasn't enough to keep him in the Big Leagues as he was sent back to the alternate training site. His next appearance came on August 23rd, once again against the Royals and he allowed a run over 1.2 innings while striking out two. Despite allowing the run, he showed good control not walking a batter and followed that up with a scoreless two-inning outing against Cleveland that saw him walk two and strike out two.
Then, he would struggle through his worst appearance of the year on September 4th, 2020 against the Detroit Tigers. He didn't walk a batter, but he was getting hit around all over the field and lasted just 0.2 innings. He gave up two earned runs on three hits while striking out just one, and he was having a tough time missing bats. It was the first time in his short Major League career that he could not finish an inning. However, he ended the season strong in his final outing against the St. Louis Cardinals. He was called on to get one out and he allowed a hit before striking out his man to end the inning. With no room for Poppen in the Twins' future, the team decided to DFA him, and the Pirates became the beneficiary picking him up.
Swing Man for 2021
Sean Poppen enters an interesting spot for the Pirates coming into Spring Training 2021. The Pirates will be deciding whether they will use him as a starter or a long-relief man, and the decision will more than likely affect his 2021 role. More opportunities are available as a reliever than a starter, but Poppen has shown more success throughout his pro career as a starter than a reliever. Over the course of 83 Minor League games, 72 starts, Poppen has a career ERA of 3.38. He has always had the ability to strikeout batters, but his big problem has come with him not being able to miss bats. He has had an opponent batting average over the .240 mark in three of his four professional seasons, leading to a lot of runners on base.
Poppen has a three-pitch arsenal, and it is unique in the fact that it doesn't feature a traditional fastball. Poppen's main pitch is his sinker, which he uses 48.4% of the time. That pitch is followed closely by his slider which he uses 45.1% of the time. The pitches are 10 miles per hour apart from each other, and they look the same until the very end when the slider veers off with nearly 39 inches of horizontal break. Because his pitches have so much downward movement, Poppen has become known as a groundball pitcher and induced a ground ball rate of 52.4% last season. However, when he needs a strikeout, it is his slider he turns to with a WHIFF rate of 48.1% and an opponent batting average of just .067.
Poppen is getting up there in age for a prospect at 26-years-old, and with Minor League options under his belt, I think he will be back in Triple-A for 2021. Poppen fits the Pirates mold as of late as a pitch to contact type pitcher, but I think the Pirates will use him more in the bullpen. With guys like Cody Ponce and top prospect Cody Bolton ahead of him, it would seem to be Poppen's fastest road to the Major Leagues. He will probably be used as a long-reliever down in Triple-A Indianapolis and could get the call up if injuries persist in the bullpen. With Chris Stratton being the only true long-reliever in the Majors, Poppen could be the next guy up in that role should Stratton get hurt or be traded. Poppen is another depth piece the Pirates have at their disposal, and after last season's injury debacle, depth is more important than ever.
He sounds like a future All Star.
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