Command fluctuates, but lots to like in Oviedo's first start

PITTSBURGH -- When the Pirates traded José Quintana to the Cardinals in a deal that brought back Johan Oviedo, the latter wasn’t even a starter. There was no way he was going to be able to replace what Quintana did in the short term.

But the Pirates are hoping they may be able to stretch Oviedo out to be a starter, as he was the vast majority of the time in his first two seasons in St. Louis.

Oviedo’s first audition in the role was a taxing yet scoreless three innings Friday against Toronto in Pittsburgh’s 4-0 loss at PNC Park.

It started off with a flash of putaway potential in the first. Oviedo struck out George Springer on a curveball, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on another curveball and Teoscar Hernández on a slider in order.

But the first inning also showcased a theme of his outing: long at-bats.

In total, the Blue Jays fouled off 22 of the 77 pitches Oviedo threw, or 28.5% of his offerings. That is the highest foul-ball percentage for a Pirates starter this season (min. 50 pitches in a start). In fact, it’s the highest foul-ball percentage by a Bucs starter since Mitch Keller (30.1%) on Sept. 10, 2019, vs. the Giants.

“I thought the ball came out of his hand well,” manager Derek Shelton said of Oviedo. “It was just a lot of deep counts, and because of it, he was only going to throw 80 pitches, and he threw right at 78, 79.”

Unlike Keller that day in 2019, when he allowed five runs in five innings, Oviedo was able to navigate the piecemeal damage he allowed to keep runs off the board. He permitted two runners on in the second inning, walking two batters in a span of 11 straight balls that drew a visit from pitching coach Oscar Marin.

“First pitches, I was a little behind. So after coming back from 2-1, 2-0, I would just try to throw in there around the middle and see what I can do,” Oviedo said. “There were a lot of foul balls, but I just tried to get ahead and just attack them and see what I can do with my stuff.”

The walks have been a concerning trend for Oviedo as a starter in the past. In 2021, when he made 13 starts and one relief appearance for St. Louis, he walked 37 batters in 62 1/3 innings. His 5.49 walks per nine innings was the third worst in baseball among starters with at least 50 innings, trailing only Caleb Smith (6.32) and John Gant (6.12).

However, the Pirates didn’t acquire Oviedo amid those struggles. They acquired him this year, when a move to the bullpen in a largely multi-innings role with the Cardinals has seen him get much better results. He had a career-best 3.20 ERA this season before the trade and cut his walk rate to 2.5 per nine innings.

Oviedo is also showing he’s willing to experiment with his arsenal. His curveball rate was up from his season average of 10 percent, and he threw 11 changeups, the most by far this season after the offering produced a .638 wOBA on 117 pitches last season.

Those two pitches are crucial to his development as a starter.

“If you have four pitches that you can throw for strikes, four pitches makes the batter have to guess,” Oviedo said. “... I’m really happy about the four pitches I’m throwing right now. I think next time I’ll be better.”

“As we continue to grow, especially [Oviedo] being a starter, there will be things we will explore in his arsenal to see how we can use different pitches,” Shelton said.

It’s hard to evaluate just how effective Oviedo can be on one start, but his ability to keep the Blue Jays -- who had the fourth-best OPS in baseball (.750) entering the game -- off the barrel is certainly a reassuring sign as the Pirates work to evaluate his prospects in the rotation.

“It means a lot to me,” Oviedo said of the opportunity to start, “and all the work that I’ve put in and to my family and to everyone, so I’m really happy and excited just to show up and see what I can do.”