Ryan Pepiot was a extremely regarded prospect within the Los Angeles Dodgers group when he was first featured right here at FanGraphs in June 2021. Then 23 years previous and pitching in Double-A, the right-hander out of Butler College mentioned his signature pitch, a changeup that our lead prospect analyst Eric Longenhagen had likened to Devin Williams’ high-spin Airbender.
Pepiot is now with the Tampa Bay Rays, having been acquired from Los Angeles together with Jonny DeLuca in alternate for Tyler Glasnow and Manuel Margot final December. He has additionally emerged as a longtime large league starter. Getting his first prolonged alternative after making 17 appearances over the 2 earlier seasons, he made 26 begins, posting a 3.60 ERA and three.95 FIP over 130 innings.
Three-plus years after our preliminary dialog, I sat down with Pepiot on the ultimate weekend of the 2024 common season, this time to the touch on every of his 5 pitches.
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David Laurila: What’s your full repertoire proper now?
Ryan Pepiot: “4-seam fastball, changeup, slider, cutter, and a curveball that I’ll throw sometimes.”
Laurila: Which of these is most pure? Mainly, you possibly can decide up a baseball and throw it with hardly any thought.
Pepiot: “Fastball.”
Laurila: That was the predictable reply…
Peopiot: “Yeah. Offspeed-wise, it might in all probability be the changeup. It’s a really feel pitch, however I throw it so usually that I’ve it just about down. After which the slider and cutter are principally the identical pitch; I’m simply turning the ball a bit bit extra to get some depth for the righties. That’s the slider. For lefties, I’ll throw it extra cutter-like to get extra [positive] vert on it.”
Laurila: Which of your pitches have you ever tinkered with probably the most?
Pepiot: “The curveball. In faculty, I had one — it was a gradual, large breaking ball that wasn’t superb. I attempted to throw it in professional ball, however may by no means actually get the texture down for it. I might by no means land it for a strike. I keep in mind in 2021, in Double-A, I threw one behind a righty. I used to be like, ‘I’m executed with it.’
“I got here right here [to the Tampa Bay organization] and would fiddle with it in catch play. I threw one in spring coaching — it was actually good — and [pitching coach Kyle] Snyder was like, ‘On the mound tomorrow; throw me that.’ So I did, after which we tinkered round with the grip a bit bit extra. It’s like a seam-shifted curveball. It’s not only a large previous breaking ball, it truly comes out like my fastball.”
Laurila: Which of your pitches is most seam-shifted?
Pepiot: “Possibly my changeup. You’re taking a four-seam, you’ve obtained the horseshoe, and I sort of hook my pinky into the horseshoe and attempt to pull with my ring finger on the seam to get downward motion. It’s sort of like Devin Williams’. I attempt to do the identical factor he does, simply with a bit totally different grip.”
Laurila: You clearly have Edgertronic to point out you the way your pitches are popping out of your hand. How a lot consideration do you pay to that when throwing bullpens?
Pepiot: “Not rather a lot. I throw my 20-25 pitches, largely simply making an attempt to get the texture down. I depend on the attention check greater than the numbers. It’s sort of the identical in spring coaching. I’ll have Brandon [Lowe], Yandy [Díaz], or somebody stand in, in my early bullpens. I’ll be like, ‘Hey, what do you see? What do you see popping out of the hand? How would you assault it?’ I get the hitter’s perspective. It’s, ‘OK, he noticed it this manner,’ and from there I could make minor changes if I have to.”
Laurila: Circling again to your curveball, what number of totally different grips would you say you’ve tried over time?
Pepiot: “Possibly six? I’ve tried the entrance facet of the horseshoe, the again facet of the horseshoe, spiked, my fingers collectively — stacking my fingers on the seam — the sweeper-style curveball. Now it’s seam-shifted, within the horseshoe, so I catch the entrance of it after which flip left. So yeah, in all probability six.”
Laurila: With seams in thoughts, what in regards to the baseballs themselves? Are there sure balls you are likely to throw out as a result of they aren’t excellent for the way you need your subsequent pitch to maneuver?
Pepiot: “For me, it’s extra that if I get a ball and don’t like the way it feels — possibly it’s not rubbed up sufficient, or it has excessive seams — I’ll throw it out. Relying on the depend… for example, if I get excessive seams I’ll hope [the catcher] calls a changeup. However for probably the most half, I don’t throw it out an excessive amount of. I’ll throw it out each time the ball will get hit, although. Even when it’s an out.”
Laurila: A batter pops out to the second baseman and also you desire a new ball?
Pepiot: “Yep. Carried out.”
Laurila: Why wouldn’t you retain a ball after that?
Pepiot: “I simply desire a new ball. Do it once more with one other one, I suppose.”
Laurila: You don’t like excessive seams except you’re throwing a changeup. Why is that?
Pepiot: “I like to tear the seams, and it feels prefer it rips my finger pads. So, I just like the decrease seams. It simply feels higher popping out of my hand.”
Laurila: What in regards to the motion you get in your pitches? Do the seams affect that in any respect?
Pepiot: “I haven’t truly executed any analysis, or tried throwing in a bullpen with the Edgertronic or any of the TrackMan stuff, to see what the distinction could be if I had a high-seam ball in comparison with a low-seam ball.”
Laurila: Regardless, not all baseballs are the identical…
Pepiot: “How rubbed up the balls are positively differs. If we’re at house, I do know I’m getting the identical factor, however on the street, some are a bit extra rubbed up than others. To me, that’s the largest distinction. The seams… I imply, they hand-do the balls, so not each one goes to be similar. However I attempt to consider that. I simply get the ball, rub it up a bit bit, see which seams I like, see which facet of the baseball I like. I discover my grip in my glove and let it rip.”
