Oviedo allowed a run on three hits and five walks while striking out five over 4.1 innings Tuesday in a no-decision versus the Giants.
Oviedo's lack of command led to him needing 92 pitches (53 strikes) to get 13 outs. It also played a part in him falling short of qualifying for the win. This is the eighth straight outing in which he's walked multiple batters, and the second time he's issued five free passes in a start. The right-hander owns a 4.50 ERA, 1.55 WHIP and 53:30 K:BB over 58 innings through 11 starts this season. Oviedo is projected for a favorable home start versus the Athletics next week.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Falls to Texas
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Oviedo (3-4) took the loss Wednesday, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks over 5.2 innings against the Rangers. He struck out five.
Three of Oviedo's five strikeouts came in an immaculate fourth inning. However, it wasn't enough to recover from a three-run opening frame as the Pirates fell 3-2. Oviedo had been solid in his previous two outings, allowing just two runs over 11 innings. His ERA now sits at 4.70 with a 1.53 WHIP and 48:25 K:BB through 10 starts (53.2 innings) this season.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Quality start leads to win
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Oviedo (3-3) earned the win Friday, allowing one run on two hits and three walks over six innings in a 13-3 victory over Arizona. He struck out seven.
Oviedo has allowed just one run in each of his past two starts (11 innings) after surrendering 17 across his previous three outings. Friday's performance was the right-hander's fourth quality start of the year, and his seven strikeouts were his most since posting a season-high 10 against the Cardinals on April 14. While Oviedo has been able to limit damage recently, he is still struggling with his control and has issued multiple free passes in all but two of his nine starts this season.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Five walks in no-decision
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Oviedo did not factor into the decision Friday, allowing one run on four hits and five walks over five innings in a 6-3 loss to the Orioles. He struck out three.
Oviedo struggled with his command and control Friday, walking a season-high five batters, and things could've gone much worse. The right-hander limited the damage and was charged with just one earned run after he'd given up 17 runs over his prior three appearances. He'll look to build off his solid start next time out, which is tentatively scheduled to come during a three-game weekend set versus Arizona.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Settles for no-decision Tuesday
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Oviedo didn't factor into the decision in Tuesday's 8-7 loss to the Dodgers, giving up five runs (four earned) on six hits and two walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out four.
The right-hander saw his quality start streak end at three, but Oviedo still exited the game in line for his third win of the season, only to see Colin Holderman serve up a game-winning blast to Chris Taylor in the eighth inning. Oviedo will take a 3.03 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 29:10 K:BB through 29.2 innings into his next outing, likely to come this weekend on the road against the Nationals.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Sleeper pitchers for Week 5 (April 24-30)
Rotowire
Well, the cat's out of the bag. Johan Oviedo got it done at Coors Field last time out, confirming his breakthrough status. The Dodgers make for a tough matchup early in the week, but we don't need to fear them with him, do we? Besides, he then gets a second start against Nationals.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
Forget who we're talking about for a minute and just imagine I told you about a strapping 6-foot-5, 245-pound hurler whose fastball regularly touches 99, whose slider regularly touches 91, and who so far has had no issues finding the strike zone. You'd be pretty excited, right? Well, that describes Johan Oviedo to a tee. One start after shutting out the White Sox over 6 2/3 innings, registering 18 swinging strikes on 89 pitches, he threw seven one-run innings against the Cardinals, striking out 10. He issued just one walk between the two starts. He's added about 3 mph to that slider from a year ago, and it's turned him into a legitimate bat-misser. Of course, pitching for the Pirates isn't ideal, but for a waiver wire pickup, the upside here is enticing.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Handed tough-luck loss
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Oviedo (1-1) allowed one run on six hits and a walk over seven innings Friday, striking out 10 but taking a loss against the Cardinals.
Oviedo rolled through five shutout frames before his former club finally broke a scoreless tie in the sixth. He has been terrific over his last two outings, logging a 15:1 K:BB while allowing just one run across 13.2 innings. He forced 13 whiffs on 44 swings (29.5) and averaged 97.2 mph on his fastball Friday. Oviedo lines up for a start in Colorado next week.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Possible waiver wire pickups
Rotowire
While Kris Bubic (regrettably) may not have caught my attention in spring training, Johan Oviedo did. It wasn't just his 24 strikeouts in 19 2/3 innings but also the huge number of whiffs he was getting with a slider that was up 3 mph on average. His season debut April 3 was a disaster, but his latest start Sunday against the White Sox offers reason for optimism. Not only did he throw 6 2/3 shutout innings but he also registered 18 whiffs on 89 pitches, including seven on that slider and five each on his fastball and curveball. He's strictly a deep-league play for now, but the Pirates right-hander is someone to monitor in all formats.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Impressive in first win
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Oviedo (1-0) earned the win Sunday, giving up five hits and no walks through 6.2 scoreless innings in the victory over the White Sox. He struck out five.
Oviedo stifled the White Sox offense all game and did not allow a single extra-base hit through his 6.2 innings pitched. The only run in this game came from a sacrifice fly provided by teammate Jack Suwinski in the first inning, which was all Oviedo needed to earn his first win of the year. The right-hander efficiently threw 62 of 89 pitches for strikes before exiting with two outs in the seventh inning, and he will look to keep the momentum moving in his next outing, likely to come next week in the series with the Cardinals.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Looks on track for rotation spot
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Oviedo is expected to open the season as the Pirates' No. 5 starter with JT Brubaker (forearm) set to go on the 15-day injured list, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Pittsburgh has yet to provide a timeline for Brubaker to return from what's described as right forearm discomfort, but Oviedo should be poised to make at least two turns through the rotation to begin the campaign. Though he had already been in good position to make the Opening Day roster as a reliever before Brubaker picked up the injury, Oviedo should be equipped to handle something close to a starter's workload in his first outing of the regular season after he covered four innings (55 pitches) in his most recent Grapefruit League appearance Thursday. He'll start the Pirates' spring finale Tuesday versus the Twins and will have another opportunity to build up his pitch count.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Making push for rotation
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Oviedo threw three scoreless innings while allowing two hits and striking out three in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Yankees.
Oviedo is competing for a spot in the Pittsburgh rotation, and Saturday's outing was both his longest and most effective of the spring. According to Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Oveido threw his slider 61 percent of the time and threw 31 strikes on 41 total pitches. He may be on the outside looking in to start the regular season, but it's likely that he'll pitch as a traditional starter at some point during the 2023 campaign.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Adds sinker
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Oviedo has added a sinker to his pitch mix, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Oviedo added the variation at the suggestion of coaches, who noted the natural sink that he had on his four-seam fastball. He mixed the pitch in during his outing Wednesday against the Tigers, though he surrendered four earned runs on five hits across two innings. Nevertheless, Oviedo remains in the mix for a spot in the Pirates' rotation to begin the season.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Working as starter
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The Pirates are planning to use Oviedo as a starter in 2023, Rob Biertemptfel of The Athletic reports.
Oviedo has gotten most of his big-league experience as a reliever, though he made seven starts in Pittsburgh to close out 2022 after being acquired by the team at the trade deadline. He posted a solid 3.23 ERA with 28 strikeouts across 30 innings in that span, and he is likely to make starts at some point in 2023. For the time being, he's on the outside looking in for a regular rotation spot, but he should be among the top candidates to fill in if injury or poor performance requires the rotation to be shuffled.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Solid versus Cardinals
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Oviedo pitched four innings, giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits while striking out one in Wednesday's win over the Cardinals. He did not factor into the decision.
Oviedo struggled early Wednesday, allowing two runs to score in the first inning, one of which was unearned as a result of a throwing error. He later surrendered another run in the third frame on a Nolan Arenado RBI single, accounting for the final run on his line. The performance marked the fifth consecutive outing where he allowed three or fewer runs, finishing the season with a 3.21 ERA and 1.29 WHIP while striking out 54 batters over 56 innings in 21 appearances, including eight starts.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Allows 10 baserunners Sunday
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Oviedo allowed three runs on five hits, four walks and a hit batsman while striking out six batters in four innings in a 7-3 loss Sunday against the Mets. He did not factor into the decision.
Oviedo got off to a rough start as eight of the first 12 batters he faced reached safely, leading to three runs. He eventually settled down, retiring eight of the last 10 batters he faced. Walks have always been a bit of an issue for the 24-year-old, but the problem has compounded since joining the Pirates, as he's walked 21.5 percent of batters faced as a member of the team. He has a 4.61 ERA, 1.68 WHIP and 16:14 K:BB in 13.2 innings in four starts as a Pirate. His next start will likely be next weekend against the Cubs.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Chased early Wednesday
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Oviedo (2-2) took the loss in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Mets, surrendering four runs on one hit and five walks over 1.2 innings. He struck out two.
The 24-year-old couldn't get the ball over the plate with any consistency, and he needed 57 pitches (only 30 strikes) to record his five outs before getting the hook. Oviedo has issued eight free passes in 4.2 innings since joining the rotation at the beginning of the month, and the Pirates may not be inclined to give him another turn even as part of a bullpen day or in tandem with another pitcher.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Gets ball for Game 2 of twin bill
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Oviedo is scheduled to start the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader with the Mets, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.
Though he'll be making his second straight turn through the Pittsburgh rotation, Oviedo may not be in line for a traditional start. In his Pittsburgh debut Sept. 2, Oviedo was lifted after 77 pitches and three innings, despite keeping the Blue Jays off the board while recording four strikeouts. If the Pirates decide to piggyback Oviedo with another pitcher, Tyler Beede or Zach Thompson would be the most logical candidates to follow him.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Picking up another start
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Oviedo is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Mets, Mike Persak of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
Though he struck out four over three scoreless innings in his Pirates debut Friday against the Blue Jays, Oviedo needed 77 pitches to record his nine outs while conceding two hits and three walks. Despite Oviedo's inefficiency, the Pirates came away from the outing encouraged enough to give him another turn through the rotation. Don't expect Oviedo to cover much more than 90 pitches in Wednesday's start, however, which could hurt his chances of factoring into the decision.
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Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Inefficient three innings
Rotowire
Oviedo allowed two hits and three walks while striking out four across three scoreless innings Friday against the Blue Jays. He did not factor into the decision.
Oviedo made his first start with the Pirates since being acquired at the trade deadline. He effectively limited runs and generated nine swinging strikes on 77 pitches. On the other hand, he also issued three walks and had 22 pitches fouled off, racking up his pitch count and forcing him into a short outing. Given the Pirates' lack of competitiveness, they are likely to continue to give Oviedo opportunities to work out of the rotation to close the campaign.
