Liberatore shows vast improvement in gem vs. former team

ST. PETERSBURG -- When Matthew Liberatore was working in the bullpen Tuesday, two days before he would face a Rays organization that drafted and dealt him away to the Cardinals, pitching coach Dusty Blake stopped the lanky lefty during his session and asked what effort level he was using during the tune-up.

“I said, ‘Maybe 70-to-75 [percent],’ and then he was like, ‘Well, stay right there, because that’s the hardest you’ve thrown in a bullpen in the last two months,'” Liberatore recalled following a spectacular two-hit, seven-strikeout effort over eight innings in the Cardinals’ 5-2 victory over the Rays on Thursday night at Tropicana Field.

The bullpen isn’t a place where pitchers often find upticks in velocity, but that Tuesday session alerted the Cardinals that they might have finally unlocked something inside the 23-year-old’s mechanics. As it turns out, it was a precursor to a performance where Liberatore's 32 four-seam fastballs averaged 94.3 mph and his 21 sinkers came in at 95 mph on average. That was up dramatically from a week earlier against Minnesota, when he surrendered five runs (including two home runs) in 5 2/3 innings. On Thursday, he got 15 swings and misses with his vastly improved stuff -- easily the best mark of his MLB career.

Liberatore put himself in position to throw distinctly harder by working in the weight room and the video room to become stronger, more explosive and more efficient with the mechanics from his 6-foot-4, 200-pound frame.

“Every day, I’m trying to be the first one in the weight room, trying to work until I don’t have time anymore and I’m cramming down meals to fit in extra workouts,” said Liberatore, who set a new career high with his seven strikeouts. “I want it and I’m going to do everything in my power to make the most of this. It’s a lot of prep work before we play catch with activation and mobility work. Then, after we throw, there’s a lot of strength stuff, a lot of arm care and core work. It’s different stuff, but it’s about me trying to make the most of every opportunity to get better.”

The technical improvements from Liberatore were obvious in the career-best outing, but there was also a human side to the showdown against the Rays. Tampa Bay selected Liberatore with the No. 16 overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft and then dealt him to the Cardinals in January 2020 as part of a trade for outfielder Randy Arozarena. While Liberatore has toiled in the Minors for years, Arozarena evolved into a flashy big-game star for the Rays who became the 2020 ALCS MVP, the 2021 AL Rookie of the Year and a 2023 AL All-Star.

Arozarena, who drilled a single back up the middle in the first inning and subsequently stole second and third base, admitted following Thursday’s game that he was curious to face the player he was traded for more than three years earlier.

“Yeah, it was in my mind a little bit, because we were traded for each other,” Arozarena said. “I thought about it a little bit. Yeah, I was interested to see who they traded me for."

Liberatore, a travel-ball veteran for much of his childhood and someone polished in media training, said he kept it completely business-like while facing the team that dealt him away.

“Maybe looking back on it, it’s something that's a little hidden gem in the game, but once that first pitch is thrown, it’s another team,” he said. “I don't try and do anything extra [against the Rays]. I just want to go and get guys out and win a ballgame.”

Andrew Knizner, who hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning, caught the lefty’s bullpen session on Tuesday and noticed the increased velocity. When that carried over to Thursday, it made Liberatore’s curveball (four whiffs), slider (three whiffs) and changeup (one whiff) even more effective.

“I was catching his bullpen the other day and I was like, ‘Man, he’s throwing harder,’ and it’s really getting on me a little bit,” Knizner said. “I didn’t think of it, you know, whatever. But I looked up a couple of times today [to the radar gun] and I saw 96 and [almost] 97 [mph] and thought, ‘OK, he’s letting it rip today!’ Any time you throw harder, your offspeed is going to play up, and he’s a big guy coming downhill.”

Before Thursday, the Rays had been 14-6 against lefties, which was tied with the Braves for the best winning percentage in the Majors. At Tropicana Field, Tampa Bay’s right-handed-heavy lineup had been even more dominant, with 11 lefty starters going 0-8 with a 8.12 ERA.

Liberatore changed all that by completing eight innings for the first time in the Majors.

“My job is to throw until the ball gets taken out of my hand,” he said.