Pirates pitching prospect impresses with massive 2024 velocity increase

The Pittsburgh Pirates had multiple prospects take steps forward this year, especially in the pitching department. One is right-hander Wilber Dotel. While Dotel’s season may not have been great on the whole, he showed some massive improvements beneath the hood, becoming a hard-throwing pitcher between 2023 and 2024.

Dotel had a 5.33 ERA, 5.77 FIP, and 1.43 WHIP through 106.1 innings of work at Greensboro. The Grasshoppers' hitter-friendly home confines did not do Dotel any favors, as he allowed 1.78 HR/9. But, dimensions aside, Dotel still struggled to locate at a decent rate, walking 11.6% of his opponents with a 22.8% strikeout rate. Of course, all that can happen from time to time when you're trying to harness an entirely new weapon.

Notably, Dotel saw a huge spike in fastball velocity this season. According to Baseball America, the 22-year-old sat at 92.7 MPH in 2023, but this year, he averaged out at 95.8 MPH. Dotel was one of only three Pirates prospects who hit 100 MPH this year as well, maxing out at 100.9. He had the third-largest jump in fastball velocity between the two seasons. Only Milwaukee Brewers’ pitcher Brett Wichrowski and Houston Astros’ hurler Cesar Gomez saw a larger increase in velo.

Wilber Dotel must harness incredible new fastball velocity in Pittsburgh Pirates' system

Dotel’s four-seamer isn’t the only pitch in his arsenal. He can also toss a low-90s two-seamer with good arm-side run. His upper-80s slider has shown off above-average potential, and is the pitch he got most of his whiffs with. Dotel’s offspeed changeup is his worst pitch, but above all else, command has been where the righty has struggled the most.

Dotel may benefit a lot from moving to a bullpen role. Each of his 25 appearances this year were starts, and in the first inning, Dotel had a 3.60 ERA, struck out 27 opponents, and held batters to a .172 batting average against. He still had issues with walks, dishing out 14 free passes, but the first inning was by far his best inning.

While Dotel still battles inconsistent command, his huge uptick in velocity is extremely promising. If he can start locating better, he may be able to stick as a starting pitcher. Either way, his powerful stuff could make him a potential reliever in the near future. We’ll see if he can continue to make steps forward next season after his big increase in velocity in 2024.