The Vulcan!

During last night’s Phillies/Marlins game, I happened to catch a glimpse of a pitch released by Marlins reliever Joe Nelson, that featured such an odd grip that I had to rewind the DVR several times. I called my brother in the room to confirm I wasn’t going crazy, because Nelson’s grip on this changeup or splitter, looked like Dr. Spock’s hand signal in which the index and middle fingers have noticeable divide between the ring finger and pinky. He laughed, and said he heard the story while listening to Vin Scully a few months back, and that it was how Nelson threw his changeup.

While most people hold their changeup with three fingers or a circle-grip, Nelson holds it like a Vulcan from Star Trek. Apparently, when he warms up in the bullpen, his first action involves stretching the divide between his fingers with a golf ball. While Nelson served up a three-run longball to Jayson Werth in last night’s affair, he has been pretty nasty out of the pen for the Fish this year.

After four surgeries in ten years, Nelson is in the midst of just his second full season in major league baseball. He last pitched more than, well, three games back in 2006, when he made 43 appearances for the Royals. While his numbers then were not too impressive, he has definitely gotten the job done this year. In 49 games for a very surprising and pesky Marlins team, Nelson has allowed just 33 hits in 45 innings, walking 20 and striking out 51 hitters. His ability to fan hitters has led to a 10.20 K/9, which somewhat counteracts his 4.0 BB/9 by resulting in a 2.55 K/BB.

He allows baserunners to the meager tune of a 1.18 WHIP, and, once there, 85% have been stranded. This has helped him produce a tremendous 1.80 ERA. His controllable skills have been solid—a 3.46 FIP—but nowhere near as good as that ERA would suggest. Essentially a two-pitch righty, with a 90 mph fastball 65% of the time and the vulcan taking up most of the remaining deliveries, Nelson has been a great story this year that next to nobody, inside or outside of Florida, has noticed. This might just be a career year, never again to be replicated, but after fighting his way through surgery after surgery, all to make it to the big leagues, Joe Nelson has definitely delivered.