MLB Free Agency: Does Travis Wood Have a Chance as a Starter?

Former Chicago Cubs reliever Travis Wood was solid in the bullpen, but he’s reportedly looking for an opportunity to start. The question is, can he produce as a starting pitcher?

Starting off his MLB career with the Cincinnati Reds, Travis Wood was brought up through the minor leagues as a starting pitcher. As a lefty who relied on control of his pitches to be successful, Wood was seen as a bottom of the rotation type pitcher because of his lack of power stuff.

After starting for two years in Cincinnati, Wood was traded for left-handed relief pitcher Sean Marshall in 2011. However, the former second round pick was not directly moved to the bullpen at the onset of the deal.

As a starter in Chicago, Wood made a combined 58 starts in 2012 and 2013. He posted a respectable 4.27 ERA in 2012, but had his best season as a starter in 2013, when he finished the year with a 3.11 ERA and a solid FIP of 3.89, especially considering his lack of strikeouts.

However, he took a major step back in 2014, when he finished with an ERA over 5.00 in 31 starts, while also giving up close to four walks per nine innings. This prompted a move to the bullpen when Joe Maddon became the Cubs’ manager in 2015.

While this may have seemed like a demotion for the longtime starting pitcher, Wood greatly benefited from the change of role. Wood posted a career-high strikeout rate of 10.5 K/9 and produced his lowest FIP of a 3.40.

At 29 years old this past season, Wood finished with a strong ERA of 2.95, even though some of his strikeout and home run numbers declined from the year before. Still, Wood probably expected to see a more robust free agent market given that he’s been a pretty solid pitcher during his time in MLB.

The lack of interest could stem from his aspirations to make a move back to becoming a starter. According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the Marlins see Wood as a starting pitcher, but they’ve signed a couple of bullpen pieces and have already signed Edinson Volquez to a two-year contract.

While Wood may indeed get a chance to start because of a weak free agent class, should a team rely on him being productive in his old role?

Earlier in his career, Wood was a decent rotational piece. However, if he wants to be in the best position to succeed, he should stick to his current role in the bullpen. The primary reason being is that Wood does not have the capabilities to be anything more than a replacement level starter.

According to Fangraphs, the 29-year-old’s average fastball velocity sits at just over 90 mph, and while some starters have been successful relying on control to offset the lack of dominant stuff, Wood hasn’t shown that type of control up to this point in his MLB career.

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In his seven years in MLB, Wood has averaged 3.3 BB/9 and has allowed one home run per every nine innings. He does have a solid three-pitch mix that includes a cutter and a slider, but I don’t believe that his numbers or ability signals that he will be able to hold up as a starting pitcher over the course of an entire season.

There’s a reason why Wood has become much more consistent in the past two seasons, and that’s because as a relief pitcher his control issues and tendency to give up the long ball aren’t as magnified. If he does want to build his value as a starting pitcher, he needs to sign with a team that has a pitcher-friendly ballpark.

Still, Wood is one of the better lefty relief options available, and will be able to get a decent contract as a relief pitcher. He completely has the right to look for starting pitching opportunities, but the wise move would be to embrace his solid production as a reliever because in the end, that’s where he is going to be the most successful.

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Do you think that Wood has a chance to be a solid starter in MLB? Let us know in the comment section below.

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