Is Zach Eflin's Future in the Bullpen?

Zach Eflin has never stayed healthy for a full season in his career. Is it time to look at him as a bullpen piece instead of a starter?

Author:
Ben Silver
Sep 26, 2022 3:00 PM EDT

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Philadelphia Phillies

Zach Eflin is 28, he's been a Major League starter since 2016 when he debuted at age 22. Yet, he's never once in his career completed a full season.

Whether it has been due to injuries or simply poor performance, Zach Eflin has always either found himself demoted to the minor leagues, the bullpen, or placed on the injured list to end the year.

It happens with alarming consistency. In 2016, he had surgery in both knees for patellar tendinopathy. In 2017, Eflin missed the first half of the season recovering from knee surgery, then missed the last month and a half with a right shoulder strain. In 2018, he battled finger blisters and made only 24 starts. In 2019, he missed time with a mid-back strain and dealt with a "heavy body" issue that saw him relegated to the bullpen in August.

2020 was the only entirely healthy season of his career, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Eflin made only 10 starts. It is entirely possible he would have been injured again had he put a full season of stress on his body.

In 2021, Eflin again dealt with knee issues in patella tendonitis that forced him to miss the latter half of the season and required surgery. This season, Eflin had a right knee bruise that forced him to miss two and half months, and when he returned, his spot in the rotation was gone.

Throughout his career Eflin has pitched 421.0 innings before the All-Star break, his ERA is 4.08 in those outings. Post-All-Star break he's pitched only 177.1 innings, his ERA is 5.63 in those games.

If those stats are not indicative of that fact that Eflin's body cannot hold up to the rigors of a 162 game season, then nothing is. Despite his effectiveness, and at times dominant control, he cannot handle the full workload of a 162 game season.

But there is a solution to the problem, one that would keep Eflin consistent, but utilize his talents in a different role.

Were Eflin to become a full time bullpen pitcher, he need no longer concern himself with the upkeep of a nearly broken body. With a lower inning total, the stresses of a full season would be far fewer, and it has been apparent through his limited relief appearances this September that Eflin is up to the task.

Since making his return Sept. 14, Eflin has thrown 5.2 innings and is yet to yield a run. He's struck out seven and walked none, allowing just two hits. For his limited career out of the bullpen, Eflin has a 0.64 ERA in 14.0 innings.

Nevertheless, there are challenges to pitching in the bullpen, different from those faced when a pitcher is in the starting rotation. Eflin has met those challenges well as he explained in an article by Matt Gelb of The Athletic.

"It’s really just mental toughness. You tell yourself to do something and you just follow through with it and do it," Eflin said. "I was ready for it. I’ve been preparing. The past three months I was down, I was dreaming of being back out there and being competitive. That’s all I ever want to do. I just want to be competitive.”

It's very clear his arsenal and mentality is well suited to a bullpen role. He could one day be a dominant reliever, and he may already be one.

Coming into his first relief appearance on the season on Sept. 14, Eflin's average velocity on his primary pitch, the sinker, was 92.7 mph. In the 5.2 innings since his return he has yet to throw one slower than that. In his most recent outing on Sept. 25 his sinker averaged 94.2 mph and has averaged as high as 94.5 mph in a single outing.

With the ability to rely solely on his three best pitches, the sinker, cutter and curveball, and empty the tank in one inning, Eflin is far more dominant than he ever was as a starter.

If Zach Eflin wants his best shot at pitching a full season, or ever being labeled a consistent MLB player, the bullpen is the place for him to be.