Cleveland Indians hope bullpen duty puts Danny Salazar back on track

The Cleveland Indians will use Danny Salazar in relief for the time being as the right-hander looks to regain his composure.

Danny Salazar certainly hasn’t had the 2017 season he or the Cleveland Indians envisioned. Coming off last year’s All-Star campaign, the right-hander has largely struggled over the course of 19 appearances. His poor form has now resulted in a move to the bullpen, according to Paul Hoynes of cleveland.com.

Through 92.2 innings, Salazar currently owns a 4.66 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 3.23 K/BB ratio. His last two outings have been especially painful, precipitating the switch to a relief role. On Aug. 20, he allowed six runs on 12 hits over 4.2 innings against the Royals, and on Tuesday of this week he managed to record only two outs opposite the White Sox. Salazar walked two, hit a batter and served up a three-run homer, surrendering four runs in all before being removed.

Salazar’s results were noticeably better last season, when he posted a 3.87 ERA and 1.34 WHIP in 25 starts. He enjoyed his best campaign as a major leaguer the year before that, managing a 3.45 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3.68 K/BB and career-high 125 ERA+ over 185 frames. Any way you look at it, he’s taken a step back in 2017.

However, Salazar’s struggles didn’t exactly appear out of nowhere. He pitched to a bloated 7.36 ERA over his final 10 outings of 2016. Opponents feasted on him to the tune of a .323/.388/.538 slash line during that span. In his first 15 starts of that season, Salazar was one of the league’s best hurlers, twirling a 2.22 ERA while batters hit just .185/.280/.289 against him.

Conventional wisdom says this move to the bullpen is only temporary until Salazar rediscovers his effectiveness. Manager Terry Francona suggested as much, per Hoynes:

“…starting Sunday we’ll put him in the bullpen. When the opportunity presents itself we’ll try to get him out there for a two or three-inning stint. So that would almost be like his next start.”

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Injuries have hampered Salazar this season; this week’s start was his first since returning from the disabled list with right elbow inflammation. He previously spent time on the DL in June with right shoulder soreness. The health issues have surely not helped him be at his best.

On the other hand, there’s also reason to believe Salazar’s meager numbers don’t tell the whole story. His 3.71 FIP is nearly a full run better than his ERA, and it’s actually better than last year’s mark of 3.74. Salazar’s 3.9 BB/9 rate, while poor, is better than last season’s 4.1. His 12.5 K/9 is a career high, besting last year’s 10.6 and the 11.3 mark he posted in his 2013 debut season.

Salazar has been a bit more homer-prone in 2017, seeing his HR/9 increase from 1.0 to 1.4 since last year. A .353 BABIP hasn’t done him any favors either. Despite all this, he actually grades out to a 100 ERA+, which puts him right at league average. He’s been disappointing, but definitely not unsalvageable. At 27, he’s still a fairly young pitcher too.

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Even with spotty contributions from Salazar, Cleveland has put together a great season and is only gaining momentum, currently riding a marathon 15-game winning streak. Right now you’d have to say the Tribe looks like the team to beat in the American League, and if Salazar gets back on track, they could become even more formidable. They’ll hope a detour to the bullpen helps get him there.

Statistics courtesy of Fangraphs.