PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — On Saturday afternoon, the Rays clubhouse at Charlotte Sports Park was a lot quieter than it typically is during spring training. As time passed, players began trickling in and conversations picked up, but the mood was still relatively tame.
But then Rays reliever José Alvarado entered and things suddenly changed.
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He brushed through the double-door players’ entrance and walked up to the iPad that is connected to the clubhouse speaker system. He tapped and scrolled for a few seconds before finding a song he liked — “Baúl con Salsa” by DJ Erug — and turned up the volume.
As Latin music blasted through the speakers, Alvarado hummed the beat and he swayed side-to-side in short strides, working his way to his locker stall situated in the back corner of the room.
Such is the mood of a player with a rejuvenated attitude following a disappointing 2019 season marred by personal issues and injuries.
“I feel great,” Alvarado said. “I’m more focused on baseball.”
A few hours later, the left-handed Alvarado had a solid performance against the Braves. He hit the first batter he faced but then struck out three in a row, not allowing a run. Saturday was a much better performance from Alvarado than his first spring outing versus the Twins on Wednesday, when he allowed two runs on two hits and two walks and failed to get out of the inning.
Heading into the 2020 season, Alvarado’s mind is free and clear following a hectic offseason during which he helped move his parents from his native Venezuela to the United States. Last year, Alvarado’s mother, Crelia, battled health issues, and he traveled to Venezuela midseason in order to care for her. He lost his focus on the mound and pitched poorly upon his return to the Rays. Alvarado began the season with 10 consecutive scoreless appearances but then went 1-4 with a 9.95 ERA over his last 17 games from May 17 until the end of the season.
With his family now close to him in Florida — both of his parents obtained visas with the club’s help — Alvarado is hoping to fully concentrate on pitching and developing into the dominant reliever the Rays believe he’s capable of being.
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“For me, I’m very excited my family is here,” Alvarado said. “It’s very important that my family is here. After my family, the other family I have is my team. I’m feeling better. I feel more power in my body. I’m seeing the command in my fastball.”
For Alvarado, the biggest issue has always been his command. When he’s on top of his pitches, Alvarado turns into a strikeout machine. At 98.2 mph, Alvarado had the third-highest average fastball velocity among left-handed pitchers in 2019, behind only Felipe Vázquez and Aroldis Chapman. He also throws a cutter, sinker and curveball, with all four of his pitches possessing wicked horizontal movement that results in a lot of swings and misses. However, he often struggles with the strike zone and can be plagued by walks in bunches.
Rays manager Kevin Cash said Alvarado’s biggest focus this spring is throwing strikes.
“I don’t care about the results as far as the outcome after the pitch, just as long as he gets into the zone,” Cash said. “Velocity is good. (Pitching coach) Kyle (Snyder) was really encouraged by the stuff. … Anytime you have success is a good thing. But it’s still (March).”
Over the past several weeks, Snyder and Alvarado have watched videos from when Alvarado was at his best.
“Him and Kyle have gone back, and they’re just trying to replicate that,” Cash said. “I don’t think he’s far off by any means. The adjustment isn’t a major adjustment. If he felt good, we’ll continue to try to harness that. He looked really good. Mentally, it looks like he’s in a good spot.”
Alvarado’s first two strikeouts against the Braves were both looking. On the third punchout, Alvarado threw a curveball and got Jack Lopez to whiff at a pitch in the dirt.
“I’m feeling a lot more different than my first time,” Alvarado said. “My focus is one point: hitting the target. I focus on the glove. That’s it.”
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While Rays players, especially the pitchers, can be reserved when discussing potential roles since they don’t want to rub anyone the wrong way, fans should hope to see more confidence from Alvarado as the regular season nears. The Rays didn’t have a definitive closer at the beginning of 2019, but Alvarado was given the opportunity several times before he left to care for his mother in June. He finished with just seven saves, while former Ray Emilio Pagán flourished in the role and led the Rays with a team-best 20.
With opening day less than four weeks away, the Rays are in a similar situation this year. The team has no set closer with Pagan now in San Diego, and Cash plans to use a closer-by-committee approach with back-end relievers Diego Castillo, Nick Anderson and Alvarado as his main options. Besides Alvarado, the only other left-hander in the bullpen is Colin Poche (lefties Jalen Beeks, Anthony Banda and Brendan McKay are all bulk pitchers), which leaves Alvarado as a leading candidate to shut the door at the end of games.
Asked if he’d like to be the team’s closer, Alvarado said: “I like the pressure. … If Cash needs me in the ninth inning, I’m ready.”
(Photo: Jason Miller / Getty Images)