According to multiple sources, the Mets have brought Mike Pelfrey back to New York on a minor league deal. Big Pelf was released unconditionally by the Detroit Tigers Thursday, who are eating the remainder of the $8 million owed to him this season.
After news that Steven Matz was to start the season on the Disabled List, the Mets wanted a little more insurance waiting in the wings in Triple-A. After Seth Lugo or Rafael Montero, the Mets don’t have much Major League-ready talent in the farm. Pelfrey, 33, spent the last two seasons with the Twins and Tigers, going 10-21 during that span. In 283.2 innings he struck out 142 and walked 91, pitching to a 1.583 WHIP, 4.60 ERA, and 4.48 FIP.
When speaking to Evan Woodbery of MLive.com, Pelfrey reacted to the release. “I maybe kind of knew it was coming a little bit,” Pelfrey admitted. “When they told me, I just apologized that I put them in that situation to make that decision… I feel bad about that part of it. I obviously didn’t live up to my end of the bargain.”
Mets fans have mostly fond memories of Mike, who ranks fairly high on Mets all-time rankings. Pelfrey ranks 16th in wins with 50, 14th in starts with 149, 16th in innings pitched with 896.1, and is tied with Jesse Orosco for 21st in strikeouts with 506. Now that he is back with the Mets, even on a minor league deal, he has the opportunity to climb those lists a little more.
Even at age 33, Pelfrey still has the stuff to be effective in the Major Leagues but recently has lacked the command to be effective. In 2016 he averaged 92.8 mph on his sinker and was able to ramp it up to over 95 mph when needed. What hurt him most, though, was his lack of a secondary pitch. The pitch he threw most often after his fastball was his slider, a pitch off of which batters hit .424. Sandy Alderson believes that once Pelfrey is exposed to Dan Warthen again, he can regain his lost form.
“We’re very excited to have Pelf back in our system, even if it’s just in the minor leagues.” Alderson told reporters. “Even if Dan [Warthen] can’t be with him every day, they’ll still be able to work on his slider and, hopefully, develop it back into a strong secondary pitch which he hasn’t had. He also obviously gives us depth behind our starters who are mostly healthy now but you never know what the baseball gods have in store.”
Pelfrey was most effective under Dan Warthen, his best season coming in 2010 when he went 15-9 with a 3.66 ERA in 204 innings. He used to have two decent breaking balls, a slider and curveball, however he has lost them entirely. Warthen is known for his ability to teach a devastating slider, and Pelfrey throws hard enough to throw it well.
This is a very good low-risk high-reward signing that would provide some decent starting pitching depth if it were true. However, it is not true. Thank you for taking the time to read my article, however I’m afraid you have been bamboozled. If I fooled you, follow me on Twitter @LBarer32. Happy April Fool’s Day and Let’s go Mets!
