Liberatore revs engine in Hot Rods debut
Matthew Liberatore has tossed a shutout in a World Cup gold medal-winning game against Korea. He's pitched in pre-Draft showcases that helped determine his future. He was a first-round pick worthy of a $3,497,500 signing bonus. But there's still a little something different about moving out of extended spring training and
But there's still a little something different about moving out of extended spring training and making a full-season debut with a Class A club.
"Walking out before stretches, it kinda hit me -- I'm playing for a real team now," Liberatore said. "This is a game that matters. And then I just got right back to doing what I've always done."
When the rubber hit the road, the 19-year-old showed the Midwest League why he's the No. 51 overall prospect in the game.
Making his Class A debut Tuesday, Liberatore struck out four and scattered four hits and a walk over five innings in Bowling Green's 17-0 rout of South Bend at Bowling Green Ballpark.
Gameday box score
"I felt pretty comfortable and dialed in right from the first pitch," the Rays' No. 5 prospect said. "The ball was coming out of my hand well all day. Whether it was stretch, playing catch, bullpen or the game, I felt the same way. It's just the same thing I've always done, reading hitters' swings, trusting my intuition, trusting my stuff. I wanted to show them that I'm not afraid of anything out there."
Liberatore flashed his potential right away by striking out
The left-hander threw 44 of 62 pitches for strikes, including six swings-and-misses. He sat mostly in the mid-90s with his fastball but admitted he relied more heavily on his other offerings, all of which are also considered above-average.
"I could see them swinging and missing a few times on my off-speed stuff or even just taking it and not even swinging when I dropped those in for strikes, so I used my curveball and slider a lot today," Liberatore said. "My fastball I used later in the counts or sometimes as a high putaway pitch, if I needed it. But for the most part, they didn't seem to want to touch my off-speed, so I stuck with that."
There are probably more than a few hitters in Florida glad that they don't have to face Liberatore's arsenal any longer. Last year's 16th overall Draft pick opened in extended spring training and last pitched a week ago, when he was informed that would be his last start before heading north to join a first full-season affiliate. With four above-average to plus pitches -- including his changeup -- and impressive control, Liberatore has the stuff to dominate Class A but stayed in Florida to build to a full summer's workload after throwing 93 frames between high school and the pros a year ago.
Because of his deep reportoire and overall ceiling, the Rays have taken a relatively hands-off approach with Liberatore, just fine-tuning things before unleashing him on the Midwest League.
"I wouldn't necessarily say I'm even a different pitcher than I was in high school," he said. "I still view the game the same way. I'm still trying to do the same things. I'm just a lot more consistent and efficient with my pitch counts. I know that's because, one, I have a defense I can trust to make plays behind me and, two, I've worked on refining my mechanics. I've worked on being repetitive in everything I do out there. Making sure the delivery, the arm action, all of that's the same so no hitter can tell the difference about what's coming out of my hand."
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While Liberatore was busy laying the foundation for what could be a special summer, his Hot Rods teammates were putting together a special matinee of their own. The victory margin was the biggest in franchise history. Everyone in the lineup collected multiple hits, leading to a season-high 21 knocks. Catcher
The Hot Rods improved to 22-17 and sit one game behind Great Lakes in the Eastern Division. Adding Liberatore to a club that already boasted Franco and fellow first-rounders
"I played with a decent amount of these guys in the [Gulf Coast League] and [Rookie Advanced] Princeton last year, so I'm already close with a lot of them," Liberatore said. "They're all really good players and I think we've got a really strong group here. I was super-excited to get here with these guys, and I'm looking forward to what we can do together now."
Sam Dykstra is a reporter for MiLB.com. Follow and interact with him on Twitter, @SamDykstraMiLB.