Borucki eager to regain '23 form to help solidify Pirates' bullpen

LAKELAND, Fla. -- Ryan Borucki has been in this spot before, but it certainly is a departure from a year ago.

In 2023, Borucki went from a midseason Minor League pickup to one of the top relievers in the Pirates¡¯ bullpen, firing sliders and sweepers that left-handed hitters just couldn¡¯t catch up to, en route to a 2.45 ERA. Whether it was as a lefty specialist, in leverage situations or as an opener, Borucki seemed to click in every role he was thrust into, putting him in position to be a main cog in the next year¡¯s bullpen.

Instead, triceps troubles sidelined him in early April, and after a couple false starts on rehab assignments, Borucki didn¡¯t return to the bullpen until rosters expanded in September. He understandably wasn¡¯t as sharp in that final month, but finishing on the field and on his own terms was about the best he could have hoped for given the start of his year.

¡°It's just a very frustrating four months with a lot of trial and error stuff,¡± Borucki said. ¡°Obviously, I didn't finish the way I wanted to, but it was more reflecting on how I was more happy just to be able to pitch and be healthy again, rather than sitting on the bad results that I had. It was just more motivating going into the offseason to get better, and yeah, kinda bounce back and have a year like I did in 2023."

After a down year in 2024 (7.36 ERA in 11 innings over 14 appearances), Borucki had to settle for a non-guaranteed deal with an invitation to Spring Training. The Pirates sorely missed having a reliable southpaw in their bullpen, and a healthy Borucki would be a big addition. He¡¯s feeling much better this year so far, and the results have reflected it, striking out five without allowing an earned run over five innings this spring.

"It was actually a pretty normal offseason for me, because I finished the year healthy,¡± Borucki said. ¡°I took a week off, threw a little bit more than I normally do. Got ramped up a bit earlier, just because I had the time off. ¡­ It wasn't good at first, but it's getting better every day that goes by.¡±

The early start could help, but there was another development in mid-January that could have a great impact on his season: he started throwing a splitter.

Casey Mize of the Tigers is Borucki¡¯s offseason catch partner, and the 2018 first overall pick has a quality split-finger offering. On Jan. 10, Borucki decided to try it out while playing catch. The next day, he threw it in a bullpen, liked how it moved and decided that he should experiment further with it.

He hasn¡¯t thrown it a lot yet, but he¡¯s shown that it can play. On March 2, he dropped one in against the Tigers¡¯ Jahmai Jones, who swung through it for strike three. He effectively killed the spin on the pitch and it got 37 inches of downward movement with gravity taken into account. Among pitchers who threw a respectable amount of splitters last year, that would have ranked in the top 15 in terms of vertical movement, comparable to Kirby Yates.

¡°I have bigger hands, so it's not like a splinker or anything like that,¡± Borucki said, referencing Paul Skenes¡¯ offering. ¡°[Mize] was helping me just with my sights and how he threw it. We kinda did a lot of trial and error with different grips. We found a grip that worked, came here, adjusted my grip a little more with [assistant pitching coach Brent] Strom and now it's been really consistent.¡±

Between his slider, sweeper and sinker, Borucki does his best work in the bottom of the zone, which is where his new pitch could also flourish. He had a very healthy whiff rate for a sinkerballer in 2023 (28.1%), and this could help build on those numbers.

Of course, the most important thing for Borucki is just staying healthy. Last year was frustrating, but he¡¯s come to camp in a much better spot than where he was for most of 2024. Now he has to prove that he can stay that way.

¡°We saw Borucki at the end of '23, he was one of the best left-on-left guys, or best left-handed relievers in baseball,¡± manager Derek Shelton said. ¡°It's just making sure he stays healthy, making sure he's able to execute pitches at the bottom half of the zone. When he does that, he's really effective."