Michael Feliz, the promising right-handed reliever acquired as part of the Gerrit Cole trade, was sent to Triple-A Friday following another rough outing.
Feliz, the first reliever to audition for the setup role following George Kontos' demotion in May, is averaging four walks per nine innings and has allowed 19 earned runs over his past 20 2/3 innings. He was tagged for two runs in two innings Thursday night, when the Pirates' bullpen was taxed following Nick Kingham's three-inning start.
In need of a fresh arm, they recalled Alex McRae, a 25-year-old right-handed starter, from Triple-A Indianapolis. McRae had a 4.76 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in 20 appearances, 18 of which were starts, for the Indians, and he did not pitch in his previous stint with the Pirates last month.
Rather than supplementing the bullpen with a major-league free agent, Neal Huntington chose to address the need through trades and minor-league deals. Lefty Josh Smoker, acquired from the Mets in January, was designated for assignment Monday when Casey Sadler had to be added to the 40-man roster.
Tyler Jones, one of those minor-league free agents, was released after throwing 16 2/3 innings for Indianapolis this season. Right-hander Kyle Crick, acquired from the Giants as part of the Andrew McCutchen trade, has been outstanding, posting a 2.13 ERA and 1.19 WHIP in 38 innings. He's emerged as Hurdle's second-best high-leverage reliever, now manning the eighth inning whenever they have a lead.
Also, Richard Rodriguez, signed to a minor-league deal in November, is one of the club's biggest surprises thus far, striking out 51 with nine walks and a 1.14 WHIP in 40 1/3 innings. Feliz, on the other hand, is one of the club's bigger disappointments. He was thought to be the heir apparent to Kontos in the eighth inning, but plummeted following an impressive start to the season.
Feliz allowed four earned runs in the season opener, but he posted a 0.90 ERA with 26 strikeouts to six walks in his next 20 innings. Opponents batted just .181 against him in that span. But he allowed two or more runs in four of his next six outings and was placed on the disabled list with right shoulder inflammation June 24.
Feliz couldn't command his breaking pitches — including what used to be an effective slider – so, Ray Searage taught him how to throw a split-finger fastball. It didn't lead to any improvement. Although opponents batted just .206 against the slider, Feliz had little confidence in throwing the pitch, opting to use his fastball 75 percent of the time.
His velocity was down from last season, and the whiff rate on each of his pitches also dropped. He's posted a 8.27 ERA with a .317 opponents' batting average over his past 17 outings dating back to May 23, allowing 27 hits in that span.
With Rodriguez and Tyler Glasnow likely unavailable Friday night, McRae provides insurance in the event of a short start from Ivan Nova. Crick, Steven Brault, Edgar Santana and Felipe Vazquez should be available to pitch.