Falter 'riding the wave' as he ends spring on good note
In his second start since being scratched due to general soreness, Bailey Falter was efficient in the Pirates' 2-1 loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Fla.
The left-hander threw five innings of four-hit ball and allowed two earned runs while striking out one. He threw 63 pitches, 49 of which were strikes and was limited to either five innings or 85 pitches, whichever came first.
"I felt good, really good. Way better than my last start," Falter said. "Just kinda riding the wave right now, but I felt like it was a good one to end the spring on for sure."
Falter felt "general soreness" after playing catch on March 12. The team said he didn't recover like he normally has and they scratched him from his start on March 13 as a precaution. He returned to the mound against the Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. five days later and threw 2 1/3 innings while allowing five hits and three earned runs. He also struck out four.
Following that start, Falter said he was able to tweak a few things in the bullpen with his breaking balls which he said led to his extra efficiency today. He threw 18 curveballs today to go along with 18 fastballs, 17 sinkers and nine sliders along with one pitch that was labeled as "unknown," according to Baseball Savant.
"I'm a big wrist manipulation guy with my pitches, so I just try to throw my breaking stuff with the back of my hand," Falter said about the adjustments he made. "Just getting my wrist where it needs to be for the slider and the curveball."
Falter really only had one bad inning as he let up both of his earned runs in the third inning. It started with a Will Wagner double down the left field line before he eventually came home to score on a Nathan Lukes single to left field. Ernie Clement also scored on a wild pitch in the inning when Joey Bart couldn't find the ball and was eventually blocked by Anthony Santander, who was standing outside the box as Clement came home.
A year ago, Falter was fighting for a spot in the rotation and eventually got it as he made his first start against the Marlins in Miami. But, now, a year later, Falter has a sure spot in the rotation and has benefitted from it. He's been able to settle in and work on different things throughout the spring rather than worry about making the roster.
"It's always nice and relaxing to have that in your mind, but it's still not going to change how I come in work ethic-wise," Falter said. "I'm still coming in here and competing every single day. It's just a little bit more reassuring, for sure, to be able to work on some stuff and not always have to look over my shoulder."
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THE ASYLUM
Greg Macafee
8:41 pm - 03.23.2025Dunedin, Fla.Falter 'riding the wave' as he ends spring on good note
In his second start since being scratched due to general soreness, Bailey Falter was efficient in the Pirates' 2-1 loss to the Blue Jays on Sunday afternoon at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, Fla.
The left-hander threw five innings of four-hit ball and allowed two earned runs while striking out one. He threw 63 pitches, 49 of which were strikes and was limited to either five innings or 85 pitches, whichever came first.
"I felt good, really good. Way better than my last start," Falter said. "Just kinda riding the wave right now, but I felt like it was a good one to end the spring on for sure."
Falter felt "general soreness" after playing catch on March 12. The team said he didn't recover like he normally has and they scratched him from his start on March 13 as a precaution. He returned to the mound against the Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. five days later and threw 2 1/3 innings while allowing five hits and three earned runs. He also struck out four.
Following that start, Falter said he was able to tweak a few things in the bullpen with his breaking balls which he said led to his extra efficiency today. He threw 18 curveballs today to go along with 18 fastballs, 17 sinkers and nine sliders along with one pitch that was labeled as "unknown," according to Baseball Savant.
"I'm a big wrist manipulation guy with my pitches, so I just try to throw my breaking stuff with the back of my hand," Falter said about the adjustments he made. "Just getting my wrist where it needs to be for the slider and the curveball."
Falter really only had one bad inning as he let up both of his earned runs in the third inning. It started with a Will Wagner double down the left field line before he eventually came home to score on a Nathan Lukes single to left field. Ernie Clement also scored on a wild pitch in the inning when Joey Bart couldn't find the ball and was eventually blocked by Anthony Santander, who was standing outside the box as Clement came home.
A year ago, Falter was fighting for a spot in the rotation and eventually got it as he made his first start against the Marlins in Miami. But, now, a year later, Falter has a sure spot in the rotation and has benefitted from it. He's been able to settle in and work on different things throughout the spring rather than worry about making the roster.
"It's always nice and relaxing to have that in your mind, but it's still not going to change how I come in work ethic-wise," Falter said. "I'm still coming in here and competing every single day. It's just a little bit more reassuring, for sure, to be able to work on some stuff and not always have to look over my shoulder."
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