The Pirates are going to the playoffs for the second consecutive year. We know their offense is led by defending MVP and a contender to repeat in Andrew McCutchen, but who has been the best pitcher in Pittsburgh this season? The answer is, somewhat surprisingly, Mark Melancon.
Sent away from Boston after an abysmal 45 innings, the Pirates have found absolute gold in Melancon over the past two seasons. In 141 innings, Melancon has amassed a 215 ERA+ backed by 140 strikeouts and just 19 walks. He also leads the entire staff in pitcher FanGraphs WAR at 1.9. Among other Pittsburgh relievers, only Tony Watson has totaled more than 0.3 WAR for the Pirates this season. Melancon has been a rock in the bullpen and has helped the Pirates weather a number of injuries to their pitchers.
The Pirates have no starter who will throw over 200 innings, and only Edinson Volquez will have made 30 starts for the team this year. The decision the Pirates made to move Jason Grilli after just 20.1 innings and replace him with Melancon was bold and necessary. Seldom do we see teams act as swiftly as the Pirates did with Grilli this year, and it was refreshing to see a team trying to compete make a tough decision despite the success Grilli had last year and s having after the trade with the Angels.
So, what has Melancon done these past two years that has elevated him from flash in the pan closer in Houston to top notch bullpen ace? Interestingly enough, he has thrown for a lower velocity and has focused more on the command of his cutter.
Prior to his tenure with the Pirates, his cutter’s average speed was about 92.5 miles per hour. Also prior to his Pirates tenure, his walk per nine rate sat at 3.2. Now, his cutter averages about 91.7 and his walk per nine rate has dipped all the way down to 1.2. He has always been a high strikeout pitcher, but now mixing in impressive walk totals due to improved command has caused him to really step up his game.
His cutter usage in general has taken a huge step up in usage over the past two seasons as well. He relies on the pitch roughly 50% of the time, with his curveball and four-seam fastball mixing in at about 25% each this year. In Boston, he threw his cutter just 40% of the time and relied much more on his four-seamer. Credit to Melancon as well as the coaches and catchers in Pittsburgh for them noticing that the pitch should be used more frequently and with less velocity so that he focuses more on the command of the pitch.
A few times over the past few years, playoff teams have seen a reliever be their best pitcher. Typically they are of the Craig Kimbrel variety, as in they are certified top closers for a number of years. The job Melancon has done in Pittsburgh has been more than crucial to the Pirates success, given the injuries their rotation has sustained throughout the season and the lack of production their bullpen has given the team outside of Melancon and Watson. Having a closer with as much consistency and reliability that Melancon has given the Pirates the past two years in the playoffs could be a huge factor in their quest for a deep playoff run. It’s a question that seems odd to ask, but we have to wonder where the Pirates would be without Mark Melancon.
