As we all know, it has not exactly been a banner year for the Nats bullpen. They have spent most of the season blowing games for fun. However, there is one reliever who has really impressed me this season. Orlando Ribalta has had a breakout year for the Nats, and looks like a guy who can be a piece for years to come.
Don’t get me wrong, Ribalta has not been perfect by any means. A 3.44 ERA and 1.21 WHIP is nothing that will knock your socks off. However, it is very solid in a bullpen that desperately
needs that. Ribalta has the high octane stuff and has taken big strides with his command this season.
My favorite thing about the 6’7 right hander is his poise in big moments. He is the one guy in this bullpen who has proven to be a capable fire fighter. With the bases loaded, batters are 0-10 with 5 strikeouts against the Cuban. That is a testament to his stuff but also his slow heartbeat on the mound.
Ribalta is one of those guys who never gets too high or two low on the mound. That really helps him in these big spots. He is not scared to compete in those moments, but he also does not get overly excited either. It is just like any other situation for him, except it feels like he locks in more.
However, his loud stuff is another big factor in his success. Ribalta has the best raw stuff in the bullpen, at least before Yovanny Cruz arrived. His fastball and sinker both sit at 97 MPH, with the 4-seamer doing a great job generating whiffs while the sinker is a soft contact pitch.
The right-hander’s most used pitch is actually his slider. Unlike many slider’s which are used as putaway pitches, Ribalta’s sets the table for his 4-seamer and devastating changeup. The changeup is my favorite pitch in Ribalta’s arsenal. Even though stuff+ models much prefer the slider, the way he sells the changeup just devastates hitters.
His changeup looks just like a fastball and moves a lot like his fastball before dying as it gets to home plate. The 10 MPH speed difference has hitters swinging at air 48.4% of the time. Honestly, it is a pitch he should be throwing more than 14.4% of the time.
Ribalta has been an arm who has intrigued me for a while. He has always had the stuff, and when he came up in April, I was very excited by him. The biggest leap he has taken has been in terms of command though. His walk rate has been cut from 14.2% to 9.3%. Ribalta’s Location+ grade has also gone from a below average mark of 94 to well above average at 106.
Ribalta’s new found command has made him a very effective reliever this year. His 3.44 ERA is supported by the underlying numbers, which have him in the same range. He is a well rounded pitcher who I think will only get better.
This season, Ribalta has done a great job limiting hard contact with an average exit velocity against of 84.2 MPH which is elite. He is also great at getting hitters to chase outside the zone as well. When you look at his Baseball Savant page, there are not a lot of holes to poke.
The swing and miss numbers are middling, but I think those could improve if he threw the changeup more often. He has also been getting more strikeouts lately, with 18 K’s in his last 13.2 innings. Orlando Ribalta is easily the reliever I trust the most in the Nats bullpen.
Even when he does give up runs, a lot of the time it seems like he is getting unlucky. I remember an outing against the Blue Jays where Ribalta gave up the lead thanks to 3 bloop hits. Sure he blew it, but it is tough to blame him too much.
Moving forward I think Ribalta can be a solid high leverage arm. He is probably not a closer, or even an 8th inning guy. However, I like the 28 year old as a 7th inning guy who can put out fires in big spots. The Nats have traded promising relievers with control the past couple off-seasons, but they need to learn their lesson here. Ribalta needs to stick around for a while.
He is not exactly Mason Miller, but Ribalta is a steady presence at the back of the bullpen. That is exactly what the Nats need entering 2027. In a bullpen that does not have many keepers, they found one in Orlando Ribalta.
