Chase Shugart's new pitch will 'help get the strike out numbers up' for WooSox reliever
Chaim Bloom has had a busy last couple of weeks adding relief pitchers to the organization. We have seen Brennan Bernardino, Justin Garza, and Zack Littell all get claimed or traded to the Red Sox, with Bernardino and Littell getting some time in Boston already. Garza was assigned to Worcester and has seen time there.
Even with adding Garza to the equation in Worcester, it’s guys that have come up through the system we see in the high leverage roles like AJ Politi, Kaleb Ort, and Chase Shugart.
Shugart has been raved about by WooSox manager Chad Tracy early and often this season for his performance handling the high leverage role in the bullpen.
After earning his manager’s trust in the role, Shugart has since put up three saves and five consecutive scoreless outings. He ranked seventh among Red Sox minor league pitchers with average fastball velocity in the month of April at 95 MPH. With the fastball velocity being a consistent weapon in his arsenal, Shugart has started to turn to a new pitch he has been working on.
A sweeping slider.
“It’s something Coach Abbott and I started working on last week, I like it.” Shugart said about his new slider.
The former Texas grad has always thrown a slider dating back to his college days, but his old slider looked more “cutter-like”. The sweeping slider is a new look to keep hitters guessing.
“It’s just something to try and get swing and misses with on righties.” Shugart said of the new pitch. “Something more horizontal to miss bats to try and help get the strike out numbers up a little bit.”
Shugart has had plenty of success so far over the first month of the season, yet the strikeout numbers have not followed suit. He is carrying his lowest K/9 in his professional career at 6.8. On the other side of things, he is carrying his lowest BB/9 of his minor league career.
The 26-year-old threw his new pitch twelve times on Sunday, striking out the first batter he faced with it.
“I will be throwing it in games this week.” Shugart added. “I’m comfortable enough with it to throw it in games when I need to.”
Shugart is starting to separate himself from some others in the WooSox bullpen. If another month of similar production comes in May and stretches into June, the right hander will be putting himself on the radar in Boston for a potential call-up during the 2023 season.
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