Johan Oviedo was called up to start Wednesday for the Pittsburgh Pirates in their series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays. It was his second appearance of the season, his first being a one-inning outing on August 4.
On Wednesday, Oviedo earned the win after firing five innings of one-run baseball. He allowed two hits, struck out six and walked one on 75 pitches. George Springer led off the game with a home run, but that was the only run the Blue Jays scored on the day. A two-run bottom of the first inning gave the Pirates a win and a series victory.
For Oviedo, it was his best appearance since he threw six shutout innings against the Chicago Cubs in September 2023. He underwent Tommy John surgery after the 2023 season and missed all of 2024 as a result.
On Wednesday, Oviedo looked like the promising pitcher the Pirates acquired in 2022. He averaged 94.8 mph with his fastball and struggled to command it. The pitch returned a 56% strike rate, which is low for a primary offering. He’s added vertical movement to the pitch. That, along with good velocity and extension, makes the pitch incredibly difficult to square up.
Oviedo also used a slider, curveball, sinker and changeup on Tuesday. The slider was excellent, returning 76% strikes, including eight whiffs. His curveball was also effective as Oviedo used it early in counts to steal called strikes.
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Overall, it was an encouraging outing for the Pirates’ starter, who struggled his last time out. If he can command his fastball better, he’ll be a consistently effective pitcher for Pittsburgh. Oviedo is arbitration-eligible each of the next two seasons, so he should figure into the Pirates’ plans going forward.
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