4-5-2025 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X
After a less-than-stellar home opener yesterday, the Pirates will shift to face a familiar face in Marcus Stroman.
Spending 11 seasons with the Blue Jays, Mets, Cubs and Yankees, the 5’7 veteran right-hander has had success in his career when facing Pittsburgh, posting a 2.75 ERA across 36 innings pitched against the Pirates.
Following a season where Stro went 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA and 1.47 WHIP through 154.2 innings pitched, he appears to be trending down in his career.
Setting aside the offseason issues out of Yankees camp, Stroman has been on the decline the past few years, seeing his ERA increase each of the last 4 seasons while his strikeout rate has declined precipitously over that same span and his walk rate has increased.
Among players with at least 150 IP last season, Stroman’s K-BB% was the lowest in all of MLB.
His velocity has fallen off over the years, pitching arsenal consists of numerous offerings ranging from his fastballs (4-seam, sinker and cutter) barely touching 90 to his slurve and slider that dip down to the low-80s.
His slider has become an extremely ineffective offering, ranking among the worst in MLB last season, getting hit at a .258 clip and slugged at .386.
But his other offerings have not fared well either as his 4-seam, sinker, cutter and slurve each had oBA of .285+ and oSLG of .455+ so hitters are picking up on the pitches.
As odd as it may seem after yesterday’s beat down, this is a game the Pirates should excel in if they are patient at the plate and look for elevated fastballs or hanging off-speed stuff.
Stroman is prone to make mistakes and put guys on base. Make it count when he does and even up the weekend series.
Steel City Pirates 