Pablo López, Joe Ryan Getting Even Better Results in Second Year With New Pitches

The Twins organization didn’t initially sign Pablo López or Joe Ryan; both came to Minnesota via trade. Yet, neither was a finished product when they arrived. López had had some success at the big-league level, and the Twins convinced him that adding a sweeper would further augment his performance. Ryan dominated minor-league hitters with his unique fastball and needed a better secondary pitch to get more swings and misses from big-leaguers. Both players added a new pitch for 2023, and the results from those pitches have been even better in 2024. 

Pablo López
New Pitch: Sweeper
After trading for López, the Twins' brass quickly approached him with a proposition. Adding a sweeper, they believed, could vault him from a mid-rotation starter to one of the game’s best. He soaked up all the information and got to work. López introduced his sweeper last season and threw it the second-most of any of his pitches (21.4 %). Batters posted a .173 BA and a .265 xSLG against it, with a 36.6 Whiff% and a 22.8 Put Away%. After the best season of his career, he wasn’t satisfied and headed to Driveline this winter to work on taking the next step. 

López made improvements with his sweeper in its sophomore season. He uses the pitch more regularly, and the peripheral numbers show it is getting more swings and misses. His Whiff% (40.5) and Put Away % (26.9%) have both risen, and he has gotten seven strikeouts in 19 at-bats ending on the pitch. Opponents have a .526 SLG against it, but the xSLG is almost 200 points lower. The 2024 Stuff+ on his sweeper is one of the highest for any new pitch, with usage starting during the 2023 season. It hasn’t been a perfect start to the season for López, but the initial numbers on his sweeper are very encouraging.

Joe Ryan
New Pitch: Splitter
López wasn’t the only Twins pitcher with a new pitch last season. Ryan has been a fastball-first pitcher throughout his professional career, because of the unique arm angle derived from his background in water polo. He was able to dominate the upper minors with fastballs in the upper part of the zone, but that doesn’t work at the big-league level. Ryan has seen his fastball usage drop from over 60% in 2022 to just under 45% in 2024, thanks to his splitter usage. Last season, opponents hit .242 against it with a .409 xSLG, 21.3 Whiff%, and 16.8 Put Away %. Some of his numbers from last season are also slightly skewed because he tried to pitch through a groin injury to disastrous results. There was room for improvement, and he used Driveline to help with the process. 

Ryan’s improvements were on full display last weekend, as he dominated the Tigers lineup for a career-high 12 strikeouts. His splitter is drawing a 40.5 Whiff% and a 29.7 Put Away%, which are significant jumps from last season. He has also done a better job of avoiding contact on it, powering a .176 xBA and a .308 xSLG. Also, he is more consistently getting greater induced vertical break, which is what makes this pitch different from a changeup: it has more depth and tumble. Ryan’s 103 Stuff+ isn’t as high as López's, but he gets a higher swinging strike percentage. Batters have posted a negative launch angle when facing his splitter. Minnesota needs Ryan to continue developing into a frontline starting pitcher; his secondary offerings can go a long way to making that a reality. 

What have you noticed about these two pitchers this season? Have these two pitches stood out? Leave a comment and start the discussion.