Seranthony Dominguez continues to struggle, as Phillies fall to homer-happy Twins
Jake Arrieta gave up back-to-back homers in the third inning of an otherwise solid start, and struggling reliever Seranthony Dominguez surely didn’t help matters by giving up a three-run shot to pinch-hitting Eddie Rosario in the ninth inning.
At the end of spring training, the Phillies noted an uptick in velocity on Seranthony Dominguez’s fastball from earlier in camp, with manager Gabe Kapler mentioning a few “really encouraging” 98-mph radar-gun readings in the reliever’s final tuneup.
It seems after three regular-season appearances, though, that Dominguez left his best heater behind.
With the Phillies trailing by one run in the ninth inning on Saturday, they needed Dominguez to keep the Minnesota Twins off the board and give the high-scoring offense a chance for a comeback. Instead, he walked one batter, hit another with a pitch, and gave up a three-run homer on a fastball that registered only 95.3 mph.
The Phillies lost, 6-2, for only the second time in seven games. And, once again, a high-leverage reliever was at the root of the problem.
“I’m not worried at all,” Dominguez said via a team translator. “I think that the more I pitch, my velocity if going to get better. I feel 100 percent. I’m not worried at all.”
Kapler had a similar reaction, suggesting that Dominguez is merely going through the process of “building up to his full strength” while acknowledging that the Phillies are working on the 24-year-old right-hander using his legs more. But the numbers are a bit alarming.
As a rookie last year, Dominguez’s average fastball was 98 mph. It dipped slightly as the season wore on, but that was to be expected. And he never averaged less than 97.5 mph in any month.
But Dominguez’s fastball averaged 96.8 mph in his first two outings of the season. His seven four-seamers against the Twins were recorded at 96.8, 98.2, 97.1, 95.9, 97, 96.3, and 95.3. Combine that with command troubles -- only nine of his 15 pitches were strikes -- and Dominguez didn’t have much of a chance.
At worst, it’s cause for concern, especially given David Robertson’s early struggles and the fact that veteran Tommy Hunter is sidelined indefinitely with a flexor strain in his right forearm. At best, it’s a reminder that Dominguez remains a work in progress as a late-inning weapon.
“He was at his best [last season] when he was able to command his cutter, just being able to put the ball on the side of the plate that he wants it, up or down in the zone to a left- or right-handed batter,” Kapler said. “When he’s able to do that, he elicits responses from hitters that are unlike most pitchers in the game. It’s just a matter of harnessing it all and having it all come together. Seranthony is still a young, developing pitcher who is working at his craft, and it’s our responsibility to give him a good foundation.”
Jake Arrieta gave the Phillies seven mostly solid innings. With two outs in the third, he gave up three runs on a wild pitch and back-to-back homers to Max Kepler and Willians Astudillo on poorly located cutters, but otherwise he kept the game close.
After averaging 8.1 runs per game through the first week of the season, the Phillies’ runaway offense was mostly tamed by Twins starter Michael Pineda and four relievers. The Phils had promising rallies in the sixth and eighth innings but scored only one run.
“With the offense we have, if we can keep it close, we’re going to do just fine,” Arrieta said. “We’re going to come back in a lot of these games in this sort of situation. Just weren’t able to today.”
Dominguez made certain of that. It was his second shaky outing in a row. On Wednesday, he entered with a two-run lead in Washington, and with help from an error by first baseman Rhys Hoskins, he allowed the Nationals to tie the game before Robertson walked in the winning run in the ninth.
Asked why Dominguez’s velocity is down, Kapler said, “I don’t have any specific reason for you right now.”
The manager added: “I think you want everything to be smooth from the start. It hasn’t been from a bullpen perspective. We’ve had opportunities to close the door on [opponents’] offense a couple of times, and we haven’t been able to do it. We have to go back to the drawing board.”
Unlocking the mystery of Dominguez’s velocity would be a good starting point.
“Things like this happen in baseball sometimes,” Dominguez said. “If they give me the opportunity tomorrow, I’ll try my best again.”