For this Labor Day afternoon game, Washington Nationals fans will be seeing a new face on the mound. Left hander Andrew Alvarez will be making his MLB debut. The 26 year old was drafted in the 12th round of the 2021 MLB Draft and has now made it to the show.
He is going to take the spot of the injured MacKenzie Gore, who has a shoulder injury. While Alvarez’s 4.10
ERA in AAA does not jump off the page, he is the best option the team has. The southpaw has also been at his best the past couple of months.
After a rough start to the season, Alvarez has really adapted well to the Triple-A level lately. He had his best month in August, pitching to a sub-3 ERA with 32 strikeouts in 24.1 innings. However, he is not a guy who goes very deep into games.
This is due to his average stuff causing him to nibble. There are times where Alvarez can have some walk issues that cause his pitch count to rise. At 3.8 walks per nine innings, his control isn’t awful, but walks are a part of his game.
His stuff is mostly pedestrian, with one notable exception. The fastball is in the low-90’s and can get hit hard when he is not spotting it. That is why Alvarez uses a deep pitch mix. He throws a 4-seamer, a curveball, a slider, a changeup and a sinker.
His best pitch by far is his curveball, which is a real hammer. He throws it 22.5% of the time and could probably stand to use it more. The pitch has a .104 expected batting average against, which is absolutely ridiculous. For a guy with pretty middling fastball velocity, he has a hard curveball. It averages 83 MPH and has a real downward bite. Here is a look at the pitch.
For Alvarez to have success, he is going to have to lean heavily on the hook while effectively mixing up the rest of his arsenal. Use those other pitches to set up that curveball. The hook is the one big time weapon he has at his disposal. His other secondary pitches are solid, but the curve is by far the best.
Another thing Alvarez is good at is keeping the ball on the ground. This season his GB% is at 50.9%, which is well above average. His changeup, sinker and downer curve are all effective ground ball offerings.
To have success at the MLB level, Alvarez will need to hit his spots and execute. He does not have the heat to blow his fastball by hitters. To make up for that, Alvarez will need to pitch, not throw. However, being a crafty lefty is what has gotten him to this point. He is a guy who knows the art of pitching.
The question is whether that can work in the MLB. I am not so sure, but we will get our first answer today. With Gore’s injury, Alvarez should have the chance to make at least a couple starts. If Gore is done for the season, he will be in the rotation the rest of the way. It is time to see what we have in Andrew Alvarez.
