Liberatore's starting role could be in jeopardy due to his recent struggles.
Cards’ manager addresses Liberatore’s future amid velocity dips originally appeared on The Sporting News
It’s never easy to transition from the bullpen to the starting rotation, but Matthew Liberatore was cruising with a 3.70 ERA through his first 17 starts of the season. Then his velocity started to dip, and his starting role could now be in jeopardy—though the Cardinals are still waiting to make any decisions.
“We’re going to continue to closely monitor it,” St. Louis manager Oli Marmol said of Liberatore’s velocity and command after his most recent start, per Katie Woo of The Athletic. “If it doesn’t make sense to continue to have him go because there’s a regression in his overall stuff, velocity, being able to hold it, then we’ll make a decision on it.”
Over Liberatore’s last five starts, the 25-year-old lefty holds a 5.95 ERA and has taken four losses to put him at 6-10 on the year. His decline in performance likely stems from his usage rate this season as a full-time starter. Liberatore has already set a career high in innings pitched with 117.0—31.0 more than the previous year when he came out of the bullpen.
His most recent start on Tuesday vs. the Rockies was another example of his current struggles. Liberatore was perfect through three innings—his fastball topped 95 mph—proving his pitches are effective when he’s at his best. But his velocity began to falter in the fourth inning before dropping even further to 90-91 mph in the fifth. Per Woo, he still sustained his velocity for around 25 more pitches on Tuesday than his previous outing.
Liberatore is still unsure of why his velocity has been off over his last five starts, where he’s failed to reach more than 4.1 innings.
“It’s something that I feel there’s no precursor to it,” he said. “I feel great, and then I go out in the fifth inning and turn around and (the velo) is not the same as it was the rest of the game.”
Liberatore will make his next start as the Cardinals continue to evaluate his performance. Marmol said they won’t make a decision on him for at least another week, per Woo.
“He’s recovering well in between starts,” Marmol said. “He’s healthy and feeling strong. But it’s a matter of being able to maintain it during his start. If anything points to that not being the case, then we’ll make a decision.”
Category: Baseball
