Atlanta Braves Pitcher Tyler Matzek Makes a Bold Prediction on Relief Pitchers in Modern Baseball- “An Extremely Important Role”

For any MLB team, having a reliable relief pitcher has become an important need for the game. Any team that lacks pitchers may count on the relief pitchers in the mid-to-late innings. Now, having a proper relief pitcher has become a general trend in Major League Baseball (MLB).

The role of a relief pitcher is not any different from a regular pitcher. Notably, a relief pitcher comes on to the pitch when the starting pitcher is tired or his pitching has not been as impactful as it was in the previous games. Therefore, in such situations, when the manager feels to replace the starting pitcher, he will have to replace him with a relief pitcher. Now, Tyler Matzek opens up about the same.

In the 2021 season of MLB, the league has seen some of the best and game-changing relief pitchers for various baseball teams. Liam Hendriks of Chicago White Sox and Tampa Bay Rays’ Nick Anderson had a phenomenal season as relief pitchers. Hendriks posted a 1.78 ERS with a 0.67 WHIP and 37 strikeouts in 25.33 innings for the White Sox last season. While Anderson also posted a 1.43 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 37.66 innings, he played for the Rays.

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Atlanta Braves pitcher Tyler Matzek on the role of relief pitchers

Adding more fuel to this, Atlanta Braves pitcher Tyler Matzek said that in the coming times, the role of relief pitcher will become extremely important for a successful team. He said that with starters going shorter in the games, gap guys will have more impact on the outcome of the game.

“Relief pitchers are people too… With the way the game is going the NCRP (non-closer relief pitcher) will become an extremely important role on a successful team. With starters going shorter in games, gap guys will impact the outcome more than ever,” said the Braves pitcher Tyler Matzek.

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Matzek himself is a relief pitcher for the Atlanta Braves. He played a crucial role in their World Series title in the 2021 season. Before joining the Braves in the 2020 season, Matzek did not play for any MLB team after the 2015 season.

He made his MLB debut with Colorado Rockies in 2014. And after the 2015 season, he did not play for any MLB team for a long 5 years.