Alex Torres to Move to Bullpen

\Last September, the Rays promoted lefty pitching prospect Alex Torres to the bullpen and he pitched well, tossing 3 appearances with a 2.57 ERA, 8 strikeouts, 4 walks, and no home runs allowed. On September 24th, Torres earned his first MLB win, tossing 5 shutout innings in relief following a disaster start by Jeff Niemann, striking out 5 while walking just 1. Torres was coming off of a season at Triple-A Durham in which he led the International League in strikeouts. On the season, he went 9-7 with a 3.08 ERA, 156 strikeouts (9.6 K/9), and just 7 home runs allowed (0.4 HR/9) in 27 starts, 1 complete game, and 146.1 IP. However, he walked 83, most in the IL and a 5.1 BB/9. Torres has always had electric stuff. But he is painful to watch. Watching him during spring training and writing this scouting report was extremely frustrating. He has so much potential but he simply cannot repeat his delivery and his stuff fluctuates as much as any pitcher at Triple-A. The Rays have given up on Alex Torres as a starting pitcher. Durham sportswriter Adam Sobsey tweeted this earlier today.

Maybe it was inevitable. Maybe it’s for the best. But for a player with the potential to be a dominating starting pitcher in the major leagues, it’s a disappointment.