From a Killer Bee in 2011, to a bust in 2012, to a turnaround in 2013, Dellin Betances is on track for a breakout year in the Yankees bullpen for 2014. Many of us were saying the same thing about 2012 and after all the talk he did not quite pan out. However, to be fair, he was 24 years old and it is hard to predict how the kids will do in their formative years. For someone who has spent their time in baseball since the age of 18, he has shown a lot of promise and a consistent track of improvement.
In 2011, the year we all first
got the opportunity to see him, he had a breakout year splitting time between AA
and AAA ball. He impressed enough to get a shot at the major league level. A September
call-up, he made his major league debut on September 22, 2011. He did not
exactly impress – facing seven batters, walking four and hitting one. Nevertheless,
6 days later, he got a start against the Rays and pitched two scoreless
innings, striking out two. In 2012, while we held out hope that he would be
ready to take a spot in the rotation, but something was off. Again, he split
time between Trenton and Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but he could not get his ERA
below 6.
Now 2013 came along and he had a
remarkable turnaround. The key difference was that they converted him from
starter to middle-reliever. Up to 2012, he had made only three relief
appearances.
In 2013, he made 32 relief appearances out of 38 games for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, and his ERA dipped to 2.68. Perhaps even more remarkable was the improvement in his control. With a focus on fewer innings, he recorded 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings and five saves.
In 2013, he made 32 relief appearances out of 38 games for the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, and his ERA dipped to 2.68. Perhaps even more remarkable was the improvement in his control. With a focus on fewer innings, he recorded 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings and five saves.
In the 2014 off-season, there was
a lot of focus on starting pitching. We signed Masahiro Tanaka and Hiroki Kuroda, CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova are returning, and there is a lot of
promise in Michael Pineda. The bullpen has not gotten the same level of
attention, and we believe that it could be a vulnerability.
Dellin Betances will turn 26 in
Spring Training this year. The Yankees have been developing him for the last 8
years. With all the departures in the pitching staff, including Phil Hughes and
Joba Chamberlain, the Yankees could very much use a right-handed pitcher
capable of striking out 10 or more per 9 innings. If the numbers are right,
this will be his year.
Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success. You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom. Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.
Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success. You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom. Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.
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