Pittsburgh Pirates: Breaking Down Each Breakout Pitching Candidate

Dillon Peters

Dillon Peters is one of the few left-handed pitchers on the Pirate roster. The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Peters last season by purchasing his contract from the Los Angeles Angels. A reasonably innocuous pick-up at the time, Peters was a decent pitcher for the Pirates down the home stretch of 2021.

In 26.2 innings, Peters posted a 3.71 ERA, 3.66 FIP, and 1.35 WHIP. The southpaw had a poor 19.7% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate but allowed two home runs. Peters’ most significant strength is limiting long balls. He had a 48.2% ground ball rate while above average in preventing hard contact. He had a sub-0.5 HR/9 in every level of the minors, except for Triple-A.

What makes this year stick out from previous seasons for Peters is that he re-added a sinker to his arsenal. He utilized it at a 16.7% rate in 2021 but used it 5% or less in 2018 through 2020. It’s worth noting that all of his offerings were average or better in terms of run value, and both his sinker and curve were above-average pitches.

Peters is a pitcher from a previous generation. But this is a guy that could work with a pitch-to-contact strategy. Peters’ solid end to 2021 gives him an inside track on a rotation spot. The 29-year-old might be an intriguing arm to watch next season.