Pay attention to Mauricio Cabrera, because he might be the next Aroldis Chapman
You might have overlooked Braves reliever
Everyone knows that
That's not hyperbole, either. His average fastball last season was 100.6 mph -- just .3 mph behind Chapman. There's no one else even in the same ballpark as the duo. Third was
In fact, in the Statcast era dating back to 2015, only Chapman and Cabrera have recorded 103 mph fastballs. There is already a Statcast filter on Chapman's pitches -- does there need to be one for Cabrera, too?
Just watch the Braves hurler pump multiple 100-mph rockets in one outing:
While Cabrera has plenty of heat, his command is suspect. Last season, he recorded 5.9 walks per nine innings, and after a stint on the DL, he found himself optioned to the Minors to start 2017.
But plenty of young pitchers have struggled with command, and most don't have Cabrera's heat. He should have time on his side to work out the kinks.
Even if he doesn't, throwing the ball over 100 mph makes it fairly easy to fool batters, regardless of control. Watch Jose Ramirez decide to swing before Cabrera even releases the ball:
Perhaps because of his difficulty throwing strikes, Cabrera didn't strike out as many batters as you might expect last year -- only 7.5 batters per nine innings. It seems almost a gimme that those numbers will rise this year.
Add in his low-90s changeup and a slider that behaves like a 12-6 curveball, and you've got all the makings of the next great relief ace. Even if his off-speed pitches are inconsistent, batters were still just 4-for-24 with nary an extra base hit off his slider last season:
Cabrera might have gone unnoticed in the midst of the Braves' 93-loss season last year, but with a squadron of young talent beginning to assemble, it's now time to tune in. And woe be unto the batters that see Cabrera after facing
