6 things to know about new Red Sox pitcher Tyler Thornburg
Here's what you need to know about the newest member of the Red Sox.
The Red Sox were active on the trade market Tuesday morning, acquiring relief pitcher Tyler Thornburg from Milwaukee in exchange for infielder Travis Shaw, minor league infielder Mauricio Dubon, minor league right-handed pitcher Josh Pennington, and a player to be named later or cash considerations. Here’s what you need to know about the newcomer Thornburg:
1. He began his career as a starter with the Brewers
Drafted as a college pitcher in the third round of the 2010 MLB draft, Thornburg started his career as a starting pitcher. He was a top-5 Brewers prospect entering the 2012 season, in which he debuted.
2. He was converted to a reliever after an elbow injury
Thornburg struggled in 2013, and was sent to Triple-A. In 2014, he suffered a season ending elbow injury in his throwing arm, after beginning the season with the major league roster in the bullpen as a swingman. He spent most of 2015 rehabbing.
3. He thrived as a full-time reliever in 2016
After his elbow had healed, the Brewers decided to use Thornburg exclusively out of the bullpen in 2016. Thornburg turned in the best season of his career as a 27-year-old last year, with a 2.15 ERA in 67 appearances. In the same number of innings, he struck out a whopping 90 batters, good for 12.1 K/9 innings.
4. He is a right-handed pitcher who dominates left-handed hitters
Conventional baseball wisdom says that a lefty-lefty matchup is favorable as a pitcher, but Thornburg held up even better against lefties. Opponents batting from the left side hit just .130 against him, and he was able to neutralize power hitters from that side to the tune of just four extra base hits allowed all season. In total, lefties were an incredible 86% worse than league average against Thornburg.
5. He is a cost-effective option
Red Sox president Dave Dombrowski said his focus this off-season was to find a set-up man for closer Craig Kimbrel, and he may have one in Thornburg, but he also stated a desire to perhaps avoid spending over the competitive balance tax. In his first season of contract arbitration, Thornburg will cost significantly less than relief pitchers with similar statistics.
6. He relies on three pitches to get hitters out
According to Brooks Baseball, Thornburg used a fastball (averaging 95 mph), a curveball (80 mph), and a change-up (87 mph) last season. He frequently mixed a fastball that exploded upwards on hitters with a plummeting curveball.
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