The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Ryan Brasier to a Minor League Contract in early June, and it turned out to be one of their most impactful moves of the season.
At the time of the signing, Brasier had been designated for assignment by the Boston Red Sox after pitching to a 7.29 ERA with a 1.57 WHIP in 20 games. He pitched at Triple-A Oklahoma City for a few weeks before the Dodgers selected Brasier’s contract on June 20.
Since then he has appeared in 28 games for the Dodgers, posting a 0.92 ERA in 29.1 innings while striking out 27 and holding opponents to a .135 batting average.
“He’s had a tremendous impact,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Brasier. “I look at Ryan as a neutral leverage reliever. I didn’t know a whole lot about him, but probably a comparable would be what Chris Martin did for us last year.
“A guy you can trust in any spot, I love the compete, I love the pulse, he doesn’t get too high, doesn’t a say a whole lot. Whatever we’ve needed from him, he’s done. For me, he’s been a pleasant, pleasant surprise.”
When the Dodgers acquired Chris Martin in a trade with the Chicago Cubs a year ago, the 36-year-old held a 4.31 ERA in 31.1 innings. Despite his poor ERA, the Dodgers believed there was untapped potential thanks to Martin’s elite strikeout percentage and low walk rate.
Their belief proved to be true. After the trade on July 30, Martin pitched to a 1.46 ERA and 0.53 WHIP over the remainder of the season. He struck out a career-high 74 hitters while issuing just five walks.
While Brasier did not appear to have as much upside as Martin did at the time of the signing with the Dodgers, posting league-average strikeout and walk rates, his 4.37 FIP did suggest he was unlucky.
With the Dodgers, Brasier has increased his strikeout rate while decreasing walks, and he has likely benefitted from improved defense behind him
There may be some regression if his home run rate begins to normalize, as shown by his 3.68 expected FIP, but regardless, Brasier has still been an important piece for the bullpen.
Ryan Brasier changed pitch usage with Dodgers
With the Red Sox, Brasier was relying on his fastball more than half the time, but with the Dodgers, he has cut that almost in half.
He has replaced a lot of that fastball usage by adding a cutter, which he did not use with the Red Sox, throwing it for 30% of his pitches in July and 18% in August.
He has also turned his slider into his most-used pitch with the Dodgers.
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