Steven Matz Can Redefine Relief Pitching

Image From Newsday

     With Steven Matz recently being diagnosed with yet another elbow injury, he will not be ready to start the season. Robert Gsellman already earned a spot in the rotation, and Zack Wheeler earned the fifth spot. The question though will soon turn into what to do with Matz once he returns. I have an idea, but it will come off as radical. I propose that once he returns, the Mets should have Matz working out of the bullpen.

     Okay, so let me say that I know Steven Matz is obviously a starting pitcher and will remain exactly that. However, allow me to make a few points. The first thing is that Matz is constantly injured, there's no if's and's or but's about that. The other thing that I should note is that he is quite good when he is actually on the field. One final thing I want to note is that as I mentioned before, the Mets have a ton of quality pitchers that can slot in the rotation. They have so many quality starters in fact, that they let very dependable (and fan favorite, big sexy walk and sign with the Braves for this very reason. 

     As much as Matz has spent his entire life working as a starter, what if Robert Gsellman and Zack Wheeler also performs very well? Should one of them have to move to the bullpen to accommodate an injury prone starter who would perform at a similar level? 

     I believe that Steven Matz would be the best option to go to the bullpen because out of all of the aforementioned starters, he would be the most effective. That's because simply put, he has the best stuff out of all of them. Not only does he have the best stuff, but his command is very nice too, as he has a well below average walk rate of 5.9% in his career (2.20 per 9 innings) 

     That stuff and command would play up far more than the other starters. That's because since relievers see less action per game, any hit or run they give up is amplified. To add onto that is since relievers are pitching later in the game (and potentially in a situation that could have a major outcome on the game), they need to use good stuff and/or command to cut potential rallies at the knees. 

     A very valid argument could be brought up that with the quality and depth of Matz's repertoire, he should be starting since he can keep hitters on their toes as he pitches multiple times throughout the order. However, it seemed that Matz pitched less effectively when he went through a lineup for the third time last season.

	K%	BB%	FIP	WHIP
1st and 2nd Time	25.6	6.4	3.16	1.16
3rd Time	19.3	4	4.02	1.37

     The difference Matz has shown when pitching to the order the 1st and second time compared to the third isn't wholly dramatic, but it does show that he is certainly more effective the first two turns through the order. This does happen to more starters than we may think, but it seems to affect Matz more than most. 

Matz is currently sidelined with an elbow injury
Image from USA Today

     I think that another reason it is best to move Matz to the bullpen is for his health. It is no secret that he is one of the most talented pitchers the Mets have had in a long time, and that it would be a shame for him to waste that talent by spending so much time on the disabled list. That's why I believe that moving him to the bullpen would perhaps conserve his workload a bit, which would certainly reduce the risk for him to come down with another injury. 

     I've talked so much about why I think Matz should go to the bullpen, but the question I'll probably (and at this point, deservingly) be getting is why exactly would he redefine relief pitching? 

     I believe due to his background as a starter, he can be used in a very unique way. In terms of his workload, he would ideally be pitching at least 2 innings (perhaps even 3 or 4) in a relief appearance. After this appearance, he can either take the next game off, or if he's needed, pitch an inning at most (20 pitch max) and then take the next game or two off. 

     Because of him being used to a starters workload, he would be able to handle this since he would be working multiple innings (and perhaps even back to back games), but it would still be less taxing on the arm than a 100+ pitch outing. 

     Now, yes something similar to this has been done with Andrew Miller, but the difference is that he has pitched 2 innings only 4 times the entire regular season. That essentially would put Matz in a fireman role like Miller, but can also work semi-long relief 3 inning outings if needed.

     This might sound like a recipe for overworking a young pitcher, but I found that over the year, Miller averaged 14.9 pitches (lets round that to 15) in each of his 70 appearances

(which typically spanned 1-2 innings). That's just the beginning and I'm warning you now, be ready for what may be some gory math/details ahead!

Image From NJ.com

     If Matz continued his career average of 16.2 pitches per inning (got that from 2,279 pitches thrown divided by his 168 career innings), he would get to about 32 pitches in his potentially usual 2 inning outings. In the rare 3 inning outing (probably what the 2 inning was to Miller last year), Matz would still be throwing 48 pitches, which is still about half of the 98 he averaged per start last season. 

     Now, I still think that despite my proposed workload for Matz, he should still be throwing a maximum of around 80-88 innings over the course of over 70 appearances. That would put him around the league leaders in innings pitched last year, but would not go into extreme territory.

     I believe that this would be unique, albeit not unrealistic. This would be perhaps the ideal way to use Matz from this point forward for the sake of preserving his arm, while also maximizing his talents. Not only would Matz likely become one of the best arms in the teams bullpen, but he may end up becoming one of the most dynamite relievers in the majors. In fact, if his plus stuff and starter background has him used in a highly unique way, Steven Matz can change relief pitching.