“I’m a steady rollin’ man. I roll both night and day.
I’m a steady rollin’ man. I roll both night and day.”
—Robert Johnson
So far, so good. At least as far as Carlos Torres goes this year. He has maintained a very effective approach to hitters throughout all his appearances out the New York Mets’ bullpen. He’s a steady rollin’ man.
As of the end of the series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Torres has pitched in seven games. He has earned two victories and one save. His pitch counts ranged from four (done twice) to 35. He has given up two earned runs. He has walked four batters and struck out 11 batters. When batters are connecting off Torres, they are hitting ground balls 57% of the time. He’s pitched to the tune of a 1.50 WHIP and a 2.08 ERA.
While some other members of the team’s bullpen have faltered; Bobby Parnell due to injury, Jose Valverde due to a high HR rate tendency, and John Lannan due to general ineffectiveness, Torres has continued to get done the jobs which Terry Collins has asked him to do.
Could Torres step up and assume “the closer” responsibilities if the team wanted to make a change? In 84 games at the major league level, he has finished 20 of them. He’s a major-league veteran of five years and he has thrown almost 200 innings. Since his second year in the majors, his ERA has dropped each year (last year he finished with a 3.44 ERA).
In an pitching staff comprised of some very young pitchers (Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jenrry Mejia) and some very old pitchers (Bartolo Colon, Kyle Farnsworth, and Valverde); at age 31, Torres is a “veteran” but still young enough to have several productive seasons left. As the organization’s young pitching talent takes its place on the major league roster, Torres could be one to add a stabilizing presence. In other words, he could “grow old” with the team.
A good example of his developing savvy is a play he made on the road against the Atlanta Braves. With a runner on first, he cagily let a Jordan Schafer pop-up drop next to him and deftly turned it into a double play.
Torres could also move to the starting rotation if needed. In 84 games at the major league level, he has started 15 of them. Last year, with the Mets, he started nine games. It seems likely though with the abundance of young pitching talent, in the long term and aside from a spot start or two, Torres will work from the bullpen.
In any role he serves, the odds are that Carlos Torres will remain a steady rollin’ man.
Last year, he was pretty lucky. He outperformed his FIP by nearly a run (3.44 ERA to 4.30 FIP) and He also benefited from a .266 BABIP.
This season, he’s getting a lot less contact and more swing and misses, but he’s also been a lot more wild than last year. So far, his ERA is in line with FIP (1.83), and he’s been unlucky with a .400 BABIP.
I like his ability to go multiple innings, but i hope he doesn’t burn out because of Scott Rice’s inability to get Righties or Lefties out.
I like the assessment of Torres, and the idea that he can close if needed. Agree with Name that I hope he doesn’t get overused.