Vince Velasquez
Vince Velasquez | |
---|---|
Free agent | |
Pitcher | |
Born: Montclair, California, U.S. | June 7, 1992|
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
MLB debut | |
June 10, 2015, for the Houston Astros | |
MLB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
Win–loss record | 38–51 |
Earned run average | 4.88 |
Strikeouts | 822 |
Teams | |
Vincent John Velasquez[1] (/vəˈlɑːskɛz/ veh-LAS-kehz;[2] born June 7, 1992) is an American professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Houston Astros, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
Born in
Velasquez made his major league debut in 2015, replacing
Early life
Velasquez was born on June 7, 1992, in
As a junior in 2009, Velasquez was named the Garey High School
Professional career
Houston Astros
Minor leagues
The
Velasquez underwent
After spending the offseason building his strength and working on improving his
Going into the 2014 season,
Following the 2014 season, Velasquez played in the Arizona Fall League with the Salt River Rafters. After giving up four hits and three runs in one inning, Velasquez left his final scheduled start of the season with a strained latissimus dorsi muscle. He went 2–1 with the team, with a 4.85 ERA and 12 strikeouts.[21]
Major leagues
Prior to the 2015 season, Velasquez was promoted to the
Philadelphia Phillies
2016
On December 9, 2015, Velasquez was part of a massive trade with the
Velasquez debuted with the Phillies on April 9, 2016, pitching six shutout innings in a 1–0 win against the New York Mets. Striking out nine batters in the process, Velasquez became the first Phillies pitcher to strike out at least that many in his team debut since Roy Halladay in 2010.[29] He continued to impress in his following start, fanning a career-high 16 batters in a 3–0 victory over the San Diego Padres. Velasquez was only the second pitcher since 2000 to pitch a shutout game with 16 or more strikeouts and zero walks; the other, Max Scherzer, struck out 17 in a no-hitter the year prior. Striking out 25 in his first two Phillies starts, Velasquez surpassed Jim Bunning, who fanned 20 in 1964, for the franchise record.[30]
Through his first 11 starts with the Phillies, Velasquez posted a 5–2 record with a 3.67 ERA. His strong performance came to a halt on June 8, when Velasquez abruptly left after two pitches in a game against the
2017
Velasquez was named to the Phillies' 2017
The 2017 season was hindered by injury for Velasquez. First, on May 30, he was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a right elbow flexor strain suffered in the second inning of a game against the Miami Marlins.[36] On August 10, he exited a game 32 pitches into an ultimate 10–0 loss to the New York Mets, suffering bruising and numbness in his right middle finger.[37] On August 22, the Phillies announced that Velasquez was suffering from restricted blood flow to the finger, and that he would be placed on the 60-day disabled list while he recovered from surgery.[38] He made 15 starts in 2017, posting a 2–7 record and a 5.13 ERA in 72 innings.[25]
2018
In 2018, Velasquez was part of an opening day rotation that was undergoing several changes:
2019
On January 11, 2019, shortly before the arbitration deadline, Velasquez signed a one-year, $2.249 million contract with the team.[44] After recording a 1.99 ERA in his first four starts, Velasquez allowed 18 base runners, four home runs, and eight runs in a span of 7+2⁄3 innings before he was placed on the 10-day injured list with a right forearm strain on May 11.[45] His difficulty in keeping batters off base came to a head on May 7, when Velasquez ignored catcher J. T. Realmuto's pitch calling and proceeded to give up three home runs in a span of seven batters. The St. Louis Cardinals took the game 6–0.[46] On June 28, Velasquez both struck out his 500th career batter and recorded his first home run as a batter, although he and the Phillies ultimately lost 6–2 to the Marlins.[1][47]
On August 3, when a game against the White Sox went into the
2020
Going into the 2020 season, Velasquez spent spring training in competition with Nick Pivetta for the fifth place in the Phillies' starting rotation. When the season was suspended indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Velasquez continued to practice his pitching so that, when MLB returned to play, he could make a strong return to the mound. He undertook a series of pitching lessons with assistant coach David Lundquist over FaceTime, with particular focus on improving his efficacy against left-handed batters.[49] When the season eventually began on July 24, both Velasquez and Pivetta were given opportunities to start, as Zach Eflin was returning from injury, while Zack Wheeler was on paternity leave following the birth of his first child. Velasquez debuted with a new pitch repertoire, adding a cutter and changeup to his mainstay fastball and curveball.[50] He was sent to the bullpen that August, but returned to the rotation the following week to assist in a series of doubleheaders for the pandemic-shortened season.[51] Velasquez played in nine games with the Phillies in the abbreviated 60-game season, starting in seven, and posted a 1–1 record with a 5.56 ERA in the process.[25] That December, the Phillies tendered a one-year, $4 million contract for Velasquez to pitch in the 2021 season, shortly before the 8 p.m. arbitration deadline.[52][53]
2021
When the Phillies signed veteran pitchers Matt Moore and Chase Anderson during the 2020–21 offseason, they were concerned that neither would be able to regularly pitch past the fifth inning. Velasquez was moved to the bullpen, where he and David Hale were asked to serve as long relievers for Moore and Anderson.[54] After Moore was placed on the COVID-19 list, Velasquez was called to make his first start of the season on April 20,[55] in which he gave up two runs in four innings of an eventual 5–4 walk-off loss to the Colorado Rockies.[56] May proved to be the best streak of Velasquez's major-league career; he posted a 2.84 ERA in five starts before a numb index finger led to his last-minute scratch for a May 20 game against the Miami Marlins.[57]
The following month, Velasquez became involved in an ongoing MLB controversy regarding pitchers' use of foreign substances to increase spin rate and pitch control. In the third inning of a June 7 game against the Washington Nationals, Velasquez lost control of a 90 mph (140 km/h) fastball, striking and accidentally fracturing the nose of opposing pitcher Austin Voth.[58] Nationals manager Dave Martinez suggested that injuries of that sort would be more common if MLB banned the use of foreign substances that were supposed to enhance pitch grip, saying, "I understand them trying to clean some stuff up. But it's hot, it's slippery, it's sweaty. I know Velasquez didn't throw in there intentionally, but I'm afraid that if we don't come up with something unified for everybody, you'll see a lot more of that."[59]
The Phillies moved Velasquez back to the bullpen at the
San Diego Padres
On September 15, 2021, the day after his release from the Phillies, Velasquez signed a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres.[63] The team told Velasquez that they intended to use him as a reliever, but an injury to Blake Snell left the Padres in need of an additional starting pitcher. Velasquez was called up for a start on September 17 against the St. Louis Cardinals, giving up four earned runs and taking the loss in an 8–2 defeat.[64] He pitched 12+2⁄3 innings in the Padres' rotation, allowing 12 earned runs and increasing his overall 2021 ERA to 6.30 for the year. Velasquez became a free agent at the end of the season.[65]
Chicago White Sox
On March 14, 2022, Velasquez signed a one-year, $3 million contract with the Chicago White Sox.[66]
Pittsburgh Pirates
On December 13, 2022, Velasquez signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.[67] He made 8 starts for the Pirates in 2023, registering a 4–4 record and 3.86 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 37+1⁄3 innings pitched. On May 28, 2023, Velasquez was placed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation.[68] On June 9, it was announced that Velasquez would undergo season–ending surgery to repair damage to his right ulnar collateral ligament, with a recovery timetable of 11–12 months.[69] He became a free agent following the season.
Pitcher profile
Throughout his pitching career, Velasquez has relied heavily on a
Velasquez's major league performance has been inconsistent; in 2018, his ERA was 5.70 in his first six starts, 3.51 for the middle 11, and 8.45 in the last nine. One problem that has followed him throughout his career has been a high pitch count, which in turn limits his depth.[72] Until the 2021 season, Velasquez had never made three or more starts in a row where he lasted five innings and held the opposing team to one run or less.[73]
Personal life
Velasquez's two older brothers, Leonard Jr. and Christopher, followed their father Leonard Sr. into the United States Marine Corps, where they served in the Iraq War.[3]
References
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External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
- Vince Velasquez on Twitter