Luis Severino has shown tremendous potential since he made his first Major League appearance with the New York Yankees in 2015, but the 23-year-old has struggled with some bad stretches. Could tipping pitches have something to do with that?
During the “Sunday Night Baseball” broadcast on ESPN, a graphic appeared to show the way Severino may be tipping his pitches. He may be using a different leg kick when he’s throwing a slider versus when he’s throwing a fastball.
As MLB player-turned-analyst Aaron Boone noted, it’s possible some hitters could pick up on that. However, it didn’t appear to help many Chicago Cubs batters on Sunday, as Severino allowed just one earned run on four hits in seven innings. He did not get a decision, but the Yankees won 5-4.
Interestingly enough, Pinstripe Alley looked into some of the differences between the way Severino pitched in 2015 and 2016, and it appears the righthander has a variety of deliveries and release points. We’ve seen instances where some of the best pitchers in baseball tip pitches, so there’s no reason the issue — if there is one — can’t be corrected for Severino.
