Cincinnati Reds: 2019 midseason grade for Amir Garrett

We’ve reached the midway point of the Cincinnati Reds’ season and it’s time to check in on All-Star snub Amir Garrett, who’s currently on the injured list.

For a Cincinnati Reds team that has struggled for years to develop good pitching, Amir Garrett seems to be a beacon of hope for fans that are ready to come out of a rebuild. Garrett has been⁠ one of the most consistent pitchers on the team this season, competing only against All-Star Luis Castillo for that role. After a breakout season in 2018, his 2019 has been even better.

Compared to previous years, Amir Garrett seems to be doing everything right. His ERA has decreased from 4.29 in 2018, roughly the league average, to 1.75 this season, which is fifth best among National League relievers. In 41 appearances this season, Garrett hasn’t allowed a run in 35 of them.

The main key to Garrett’s success has been the increase in the using his slider. In 2018, according to FanGraphs, Garrett used his slider just over a third of the time. After working with Garrett over the offseason and in Spring Training, pitching coach Derek Johnson saw potential in his slider more than the fastball.

Garrett took the advice. In 2019, sliders have accounted for 58.7% of the pitches he has thrown, and boy has it paid off. His 12.75 K/9 rate is 10th in the National League and nearly half of Garrett’s outs have been recorded via the strikeout.

Hard contact kills pitchers. Home runs, extra base hits, and even hard hit singles will get you taken out of a game quickly. Luckily, Garrett has the great combination of a lower hard-hit rate and higher soft-contact rate compared to the rest of his career.

Less hard hit balls means less home runs hit. In Great American Ball Park, you can’t get enough pitchers with low home run rates. In 36 innings, Garrett given up just 3 home runs. Surprisingly enough, his .8 HR/9 rate is only 4th best on the team, behind David Hernandez (.5), Robert Stephenson (.6), and Tanner Roark (.7).

Not only are batters making less hard contact with Garrett’s pitches, they’re making less contact all together. Batters make contact with 60% of his pitches, down from 70% just last season. That goes back to Garrett’s slider; it’s unhittable. Batters are struggling to hit Garrett, which is what makes him so great.

In a year where almost every Cincinnati Reds player seems to be regressing from last year, Amir Garrett’s improvements have not gone unnoticed. Not only has he shown a difference in traditional stats, but the batted ball stats back it up. This makes it more likely that it wasn’t just a fluke, Garrett has improved and is here to stay.