MN Twins Ace Pablo Lopez Added Another Weapon to His Arsenal

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Pablo Lopez, Minnesota Twins
Credit: David Richard-Imagn Images

There was hope that the Minnesota Twins would pitch their way to prominence this season. The bullpen was projected to be among the best in baseball and the starting rotation looked like the deepest in the AL Central.

After a shaky start to the season, the starters have played a key role in the Twins fight to get back to smelling distance of .500, now at 18-20. This, after their second sweep in a row, most recently over the Baltimore Orioles.

Two MN Twins starters, Pablo Lopez and Joe Ryan, have been nothing short of incredible. Since imploding in St. Louis during his first start of the season, Bailey Ober has pitched well too. That included a grind it out performance on Thursday to close out the Orioles.

Pablo Lopez adds new changeup to pitching arsenal

Pablo Lopez - Minnesota Twins
Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

There are few pitchers who prepare with the intent and determination that Pablo Lopez does. His 4.08 ERA in 2024 wasn’t good enough for an ace, so the 8-year MLB veteran went into the offseason with a mission to get better against lefties.

And that is where he came up with a new pitch for his already nuclear arsenal of weapons… a new changeup. Yes, Pablo already throws a changeup, but this one has a different grip and more down and away movement against left-handed hitters.

“He’s throwing two [changeups] now. He’s not just switching it up. He’s actually adding more to his arsenal. Honestly, Pablo, he’s a thinker, and he’s always going to continually find ways to attack things that he wants to do better.

Rarely do you get a chance to prove just what those adjustments are made of because you don’t face very many seven- and eight-hitter lefthanded lineups. These lefthanded lineups have been a little more challenging for him at times, but the way he’s attacked them the last two outings, he looked fantastic. I don’t think he could throw the ball too much better against this type of lineup.”

Rocco Baldelli – Star Tribune

“It’s the new fad. One is the one he’s used his whole life. One moves a little more. I’m not gonna give away all the tips and tricks, but yes, he has two now. They move differently.”

Ryan Jeffers – Star Tribune

Lefties have a .743 OPS against Pablo Lopez over the course of his career, whereas righties have just a .642 OPS. This season, that split has been even more pronounced, with left-handed batters compiling a .640 OPS against the Minnesota Twins ace, while righties are at just .404 OPS.

Minnesota Twins ace has been dominant

Baltimore rolled out a lineup with seven hitters on the left side against Lopez on Tuesday. He racked up a season-high 11 strikeouts, and only one of the two hits he allowed came from a left-handed batter.

On the season, Pablo Lopez owns a 2.18 ERA (2.09 FIP) and leads the Twins pitching staff with a 1.3 fWAR, despite missing three turns through the rotation with an an injury. He’s piled up 37 strikeouts in just 33 innings. His 1.4 BB/9 is the lowest of his career.

Related: Royce Lewis is Trying to Trade Speed for Health…

As a whole, his 21.6% changeup usage is up slightly from last season, and he’s dialed back the velocity to 86.9 mph, representing a greater gap between his two changeups and the fastball. Through his first six starts Lopez is leaning into a velocity split. His 43.5% fastball usage (94.5 mph) is a career-high. He’s dialed back the sinker, curveball, and slider usage to incorporate his pair of changeups.

He’s now giving up a career-low 26.1% hard-hit rate and his 50.6% ground ball rate is nearly an 8% jump from last season. This is Lopez’s 8th season at the major league level. He continues to show there is more he can do to take his game to the next level as well.

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