Showstopper: A's Upset Rangers, But Feliz's Debut Reigns Supreme
Neftali Feliz is better at baseball than you.I found it somewhat telling that with the Athletics still joyously celebrating their abrupt Monday evening walk-off victory and the Rangers still smarting from the fresh sting of a rare ninth-inning defeat, a small contingent of high-profile Rangers was huddled not on the bench bemoaning the game's unfortunate outcome, but rather huddled around their hobbled right fielder, with the immediate concern for their teammate's welfare clearly overpowering the disappointment on the emotional seismograph.
I've long maintained that, from the perspective of a Texas Rangers fan, there are few things quite so infuriating to watch as a well-pitched loss, but it recently struck me that well-pitched games -- previously unusual phenomena which are now largely ascribable to a still rock-solid bullpen and greatly improved defense -- have become increasingly commonplace with this franchise; that is to say, they're no longer as infrequent as a full moon.
Now, that reality may not soften the blow of that catastrophic final frame, but as sub-three-runs-allowed contests have become increasingly prevalent with Texas, the offense has regressed, and there presumably isn't one person in the Rangers clubhouse who doesn't recognize what Cruz has meant to this ballclub in 2009, both with the bat and with the glove. It's a marathon, not a sprint, and his physical well-being is, in the long run, of greater importance than any single win or loss.
[Cruz, incidentally, incurred a sprained left ankle while attempting to track down Rajai Davis's game-winning RBI triple and required a helping hand from head trainer Jamie Reed as he gingerly limped off the field. His injury status is currently listed as day-to-day, although Ian Kinsler's day-to-day ankle sprain ultimately required a stint on the 15-day disabled list, and post-game reports indicate that Cruz's ankle "was swollen [...] and heavily taped," and judging by the severity of his limp, it's hard to fathom Cruz being ready before Friday evening's series opener in Anaheim at the very earliest.]
Five years down the line, however, we're not going to remember this game for the gutwrenching finish or the freakish ninth-inning injury. In a ruthless sport that is inherently predicated on failure, 21-year-old fireballer Neftali Feliz eschewed the very notion of failure in his first-ever major league appearance through his utter domination of a badly overmatched Athletics lineup ... and that, my friends, is what we're still going to remember five years down the line:
[Direct link available here.]
Spectacular. Awe-inspiring. Transcendent. Frankly, I'm not sure his 30-pitch effort could be over-hyperbolized even if somebody were to futilely attempt to do so; he was that brilliant and that poised and that effortless and that downright nasty. In his two perfect frames of work in relief of a still-steamrolling Dustin Nippert, Feliz hurled 23 fastballs -- averaging 98.8 mph and peaking at 100.5 mph -- and brandished a steady low-90s change-up, a pitch so inducing of disbelief that Pitch f/x classified the offering as a two-seam fastball.
The speed differential between these two similarly breaking pitches was the real key to the change-up's filthiness; two months ago, Dave Allen of The Baseball Analysts published a Pitch f/x-centric study which suggested that the optimal speed differential between a pitcher's fastball and change-up is, in terms of run prevention, between 5-12 percent. Feliz's extremely potent one-two punch falls within those parameters, boding particularly well for his chances of neutralizing left-handed opponents with his change-up and embarrassing right-handed foes with the power low-80s curveball -- and, of course, both dexterities with his fastball, a legitimately devastating pitch that he hurls with virtually inexplicable ease and improving command.
It has assuredly already been mentioned elsewhere, but there was a fleeting moment after Feliz notched his fourth consecutive strikeout -- one which cemented his place in the annals of baseball history as the first pitcher to strike out his first four batters faced since Pete Richert whiffed six to begin his Dodgers debut on April 12th, 1962 -- when he nonchalantly walked towards behind the mound and, with a very placid expression, ever so slightly cocked his head to one side, as if to say, "Hey, this isn't so tough."
It's going to get exponentially tougher the moment he toes the pitching rubber against a legitimately decent offense in front of a legitimately respectable crowd, and even tougher still the first time he plys his high-velocity craft within the friendly confines of Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, but Feliz is, by all indications, uniquely equipped to handle these challenges by virtue of his talent and makeup, and if this Rangers squad somehow overcomes the 4.5-game division deficit to taste October glory, it seems abundantly clear that Feliz will have played a relatively big part in helping Texas get there.
If you're not on board yet, it's time for you to get on board.
15 Comments | in Analysis, Game Recaps, The Season
Reader Comments (15)
I am very disappointed that I missed Feliz by about one inning because of going to bed early (I hate west coast night games) but its great to see that he pitched so well. I hope that we can catch up to the red hot angels; I don’t know how they are playing so well with all of the injuries.
Now we're talking. It doesn't look like he is throwing that hard, does it? Seems effortless. Hey, maybe I'll go into the backyard and start trying to throw a few...
This is so nice to see. Ultimately, the Rangers will need to figure out the best role for this young man, and for Holland, too, but for now, let's just enjoy.
It's a bummer to wake up and see the Rangers blew that game... (I went to bed after Feliz was done for the night).
I can however see why Feliz's fastball has been ranked by many as the best in the business and not just on the Rangers farm.
His easy delivery is just sick... and I can't help to imagine what he's going to be like when he a) physically matures and b) learns how to REALLY pitch in the bigs. OMG, he's going to be scary.
As long as he remains healthy I would think this kid is going to have a very bright future and make many all-star appearances.
Ok, so yesterday I thought there was a chance Feliz would get into the game, so before I left for work I set my DVR to record the game (and an extra two hours in case of extra innings). When I got home from a late night of work, the my first act was to check the box score to see if he pitched. It was like I was checking to see if I had recorded someone breaking the home-run record or pitching a perfect game. I was excited. I had seen Neftali pitch in Frisco last year and have even shook the kid's hand, but this was different. I put on the game already knowing what I was going to see but was still impressed. Actually, what I saw of Nippert's start was pretty impressive but was completely overshadowed by Feliz. When Feliz came on I turned up the volume and closed my laptop. There was nothing else that could take my eyes off of that debut.
this kid is a beast! his best pitch of the night by far was a 100mph inside corner that had some nasty 2 seam/ cutter action to it! his slider is deceptive enough cuz everything comes from the same arm speed and arm action....i hope they let him pitch a game as a starter late sept i wanna see what kind of adjustments guys will make on him after the first look....
This is why I was so upset when I kept hearing these stories that Texas was going to trade Feliz and Smoak for Halladay. Feliz could be every bit as good as Halladay in the future, and he's younger, cheaper, and controllable for many years. And I imagine that Smoak will prove to be just as special a player as Feliz will be...
Good job JD.
91 MPH CHANGE UP... that's ridiculous! Who has a 91 MPH change up?
If Feliz threw his whole body (i.e. E. Volquez) into every pitch I would be worried about his health... but with that easy arm action he could be around for a long time. I was REALLY impressed with him.
Granted, it was the A's... but still, it's going to be awfully hard to see 100 MPH heat and then hit a 91 MPH change...
There's been a lot of speculation about what pitches Feliz actually threw. He says he tossed a four seamer, two seamer, splitter, and slider. From the movement his 90-91 mph change as we see it did move like a splitter, but he was using the circle grip commonly associated with a circle change. So even though he's using a changeup grip, I feel it's safe to call this a splitter since it moves like one and that's what he calls it. As far as the slider goes, It really moves much more like a curve than a slider. I don't know if we should call it a slurve, a power curve, or a slider as he would suggest.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I think it would be nice to come to some sort of consensus here at BBTiA on our classification of Feliz's nasty stuff (regardless of what Pitch f/x calls any of his pitches).
In various threads, I've seen two people claim that Feliz has claimed to throw 4 pitches including a two-seamer and splitter. Where did he say this?
I think Nadel said it last night.
I got the four pitch thing from Evan Grant on Inside Corner. I'm trying to pull it back up, but the website isn't helping me out. I personally didn't see anything that resembled a two-seamer, but that's just what I read. The page is currently only showing about half of Evan's post.
http://insidecorner.dmagazine.com/2009/08/04/the-feliz-report-rookie-hits-101-mph-in-debut/
I'm by no means an expert, so I just posted what I had read from someone who has more access and experience than I have. If you were asking me what I saw, I'd say he threw a four-seamer, circle change, and a power curve.
I'd take Neftali's word over my eyes any day, but until I actually see "two-seamer" and "splitter" attributed to Neftali himself, I'm pretty sure he's only working a four-seamer, circle change, and curve.
I wasn't calling anyone out, I just wanted to know the source so that I could evaluate it for myself. No offense or anything, but I'm kind of doubting that report right now - even if it comes from Evan.
He certainly wasn't throwing either of those two pitches last season, and given the work his curve and change-up needed coming into this season, I find it hard to believe the Rangers (or Feliz) would start adding new pitches to his arsenal.
I just wrote Evan to get further explanation. I'm with you on the assessment. I definitely saw the circle grip, and the breaking ball didn't have the horizontal movement or velocity I would associate with a slider. It looked like it broke like a hard curve.
During the Roy Holliday bidding farce, I thought "they want Feliz Neftali?... so what give him up and whoever else they want"...
WOW who was I kiddin'... Someday soon Holliday might be in a Rocker while this kid is still Rockin!
Wonderful prose, JM, and without any embellishment at all. I very much enjoyed your take. Nice to meet you the other night, btw.