Hader has relief equivalent of no-no
It won’t go down in the Major League Baseball record book, but Milwaukee Brewers closer Josh Hader has pitched the equivalent of a relief no-hitter, and then some.
With his one-inning save of the Brewers’ 3-2 victory over Cincinnati at Miller Park on Tuesday night, Hader stretched his season-opening hitless streak to 91⁄3 innings over nine outings. The slinging lefty has allowed no hits or runs while issuing five walks and logging 13 strikeouts.
Only one other pitcher in big-league history opened a season by pitching at least one inning over nine appearances without allowing a hit. Billy Wagner, another hard-throwing lefty, did so with the New York Mets in 2008 before surrendering a hit in his 10th outing.
Of throwing the equivalent of a nohitter over nine appearances, Hader said, “I’m just going out there every day and trying to get three outs and limit the amount of pitches I throw. Keep the ball game where it is when I come in.”
Hader, 26, was named the National League reliever of the year in both 2018 and 2019, so this is not the first time he has put together a dominant streak. But manager Craig Counsell made it clear that nothing is guaranteed in the major leagues.
“We should never take Josh for granted,” Counsell said. “What he’s done here has been brilliant and he just continues to do it. He’s been the reliever of the year for a couple of years and he’s doing it again.
“What he has done this year is how hard he’s worked on the slider. It’s become a big pitch for him and he has used it really effectively. I applaud him for that and I give him credit because that’s what great players do. They continue to make adjustments.
Counsell hit on what has made Hader so different on the mound this year – increased usage of his slider. He had been primarily a fastball pitcher in the past, throwing that pitch a whopping 84.3% of the time in 2019, according to FanGraphs.
This season, Hader has thrown his fastball only 65.3% of the time. In doing so, he has thrown his slider more than twice as often, up from 15.4% last season to 34.7% this year.
The long-haired Hader had good reason to mix his pitches more this season. Because he threw his slider so seldom in 2019, hitters began sitting on his fastball more and more, leading to a total of 15 home runs in 752⁄3 innings, compared to nine in 811⁄3 innings the previous season.
“It’s definitely different from where I was before,” Hader said. “The league is going to adjust to you. If you’re not going to adjust back, they’re going to get you. We see the teams in our division a lot, so they’re going to have the book on me.
“When you just throw a fastball, they’re going to eventually sit on that. Guys are now throwing 95 (mph) and they’re adapting to that. It’s one of the things I need to do as a pitcher – better myself and my ability to get outs and keep these hitters off-balance.”
As for how his slider feels at present, Hader said, “It has been good. I have a lot more confidence in that pitch. Every offseason I try to develop my off-speed pitches and try to be comfortable throwing them at any count. I’ve been able to get the consistent spin I want.”
Making Hader’s best start to a season more interesting is the fact that he isn’t throwing quite as hard as he did last year. His fastball velocity is down from 95.6 mph, a career best, to 94.3 mph, according to FanGraphs. Even his slider speed is down, from 82 mph to 80 mph.
Hader’s strikeout rate also is lower, down from 16.4 per nine innings in ’19 to 12.5 per nine this year, not that his current level is anything to sneeze at. Some hitters have engaged him in much longer at-bats by fouling off more pitches, including a 13-pitch battle with Chicago’s Nico Hoerner that closed a 6-5 victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Aug. 16.
“I’m not worried about speed,” Hader said. “My job is to command pitches and keep these hitters off-balance. My 93 or 94 also plays a little higher, from the swings I’m getting. It’s not a big deal to me because I’m not depending on that one pitch. Last year, you needed that velocity because they were sitting on that one pitch.
“It’s being able to develop those secondaries because it makes the fastball look faster. It gets on the hitters a little more because they can’t just sit on that one pitch. You don’t see the ambush (of the fastball) as much. That’s a difference from last year. They’re not selling out on the fastball.”
The manner in which Counsell has used Hader has changed as well. In the past, he often called on him to cover more than three outs, with the understanding that he wouldn’t be available for a few days afterward. Hader led the majors with nine saves of at least two innings in 2019, with 14 total appearances of at least two (the Brewers went 13-1 in those games).
This season, with the schedule condensed to 60 games in 66 days because of the pandemic, Counsell has used Hader in a more conventional manner as the closer. Hader has pitched more than one inning just once, recording the final four outs to secure a 4-3 victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Aug. 14. In that game, he threw a season-high 35 pitches.
Hader saved the first two games of the Cincinnati series, marking the first time this season Counsell used him on consecutive nights. For the first time, he failed to record a strikeout Tuesday night but also threw only nine pitches, a season low, to put down all three hitters he faced.
“I enjoy this role I’m in now,” Hader said. “Whenever my name is called, I’m ready to get the last three outs. Right now, it’s get the last three outs. I’m able to develop as a pitcher and work the hitters more.
“(Pitching) multiple innings, it’s harder to bounce back as far as the recovery aspect. “Obviously, it’s more pitches. A one-inning relief stint is less wear and tear on you. You can bounce back quicker.”
For the second year in a row, in part because the Brewers are only on the cusp of the playoff picture, Hader’s name has surfaced in trade rumors in advance of the Monday deadline to make deals. The narrative also is the same: The Brewers will listen to any offer, as they always do, but aren’t looking to trade Hader and would ask for an exorbitant return.
Asked if that talk fazes him, Hader said, “I don’t really dig too deep into it. Obviously, I hear the rumors; it’s hard not to it. But I’m happy here. I’m going to do my job here. I love this team. I love the camaraderie we have, the way we focus together and win ball games. I just focus on what I can control.”