Since Joel Payamps came to the Milwaukee Brewers in a trade in December, the 29-year-old right-hander has worked on honing his slider.
It might well have saved his career.
“It was (a matter of) sharpening it up a little bit, honestly,” bullpen coach Jim Henderson said. “We haven’t done anything drastic with it. Movement properties are maybe a touch better.”
The turnaround and success Payamps is enjoying — particularly with his slider — might be hard to believe, given he’s on his fourth team in three years.
“Payamps is a guy we’ve had our eye on for a couple of years,” Brewers general manager Matt Arnold said following the three-team trade that brought Payamps from Oakland along with catcher William Conteras.
“When he became available, we thought he was a really good arm who could fit into our mix in the major leagues immediately. He has really good ingredients, multiple pitches.”
Payamps posted a 3.23 ERA while going 3-6 last season with the Kansas City Royals and Oakland A’s. Although never known as a strikeout pitcher, he was fanning even fewer batters than usual and hitters were hitting his slider — which he threw 36.1% of the time — at a .302 clip.
So the goal entering spring training was to refine and improve that pitch.
“When I got here, the pitching staff came to me right away with the areas they wanted me to improve,” Payamps said through translator Carlos Brizuela. “They made me feel part of the team right away and helped me understand what I needed to do to be better.”
The adjustment was slight but effective, with the goal to improve the slider’s horizontal movement to allow it to stay tighter after release.
“It’s not an early look for hitters,” Henderson said. “It’s tracking better and it’s a sharper pitch overall.”
The Brewers gave Payamps ample time in spring training to refine the pitch and become comfortable with it as he split his time between the back fields and Cactus League games (5⅓ innings).
“He’s the type of pitcher who saves his bullets for the game so he wasn’t able to accomplish (the feel of the pitch) from throwing bullpens or throwing programs,” Henderson said. “So we had to go to higher intense live batting practices (and games). That was really helpful for him.”
Slight adjustment has led to confidence on the mound for Payamps
Payamps has always thrown a slider but has increased his usage from 29.6% in 2021 to 40.5% this season, making it his favorite pitch. It’s also become his most effective, as batters are hitting only .170, slugging .204 and whiffing 34.2% of the time against it.
The slider is also one of the best in the National League with regard to vertical and horizontal movement.
“It’s obviously a different pitch than I ever had before, but the more I throw it, the more comfortable I become with it,” Payamps said. “And you see the results of how hitters react to it, so you keep throwing it and keep building on the success that you have.”
The increased movement and improved results with the slider have given Payamps increased confidence in the pitch.
“He’s been super stubborn with it,” Henderson said. “(If) he misses down and way off the plate, he doesn’t give in. It doesn’t discourage him. … It’s almost, like, on purpose.
“It’s not like, ‘I’m going to give in on a hitter with it or I’m going to give up in the middle of the plate.’ He knows it’s good. He knows he can throw it in these spots and if it catches right and hits his zone, he’s going to get a good result.”
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Payamps is in the midst of his best season in the majors, with career highs in strikeout percentage (26.9), strikeout-to-walk ratio (5 to 1) and strikeouts per nine innings (9.9).
He also leads all Brewers relievers in strikeouts at 40.
“Baseball is a hard sport. It might look easy from out there, but we all know how hard it is to hit,” Contreras said. “When he is on and he makes his pitches, (he) makes it even harder for guys (to hit).”
The results and ensuing confidence have helped make Payamps one of manager Craig Counsell’s most trusted relievers.
“That is the biggest thing that has helped him,” Counsell said. “He has worked his way into some big innings and that is to his credit.”
As a former starter, Payamps provides Brewers with versatility
His trustworthiness and past of being a starter also provides the Brewers with the luxury of using him in different situations.
Payamps, a native of Santiago, Dominican Republic, has one major-league start since debuting in 2019 but made 119 over the course of 10 years in the minor leagues.
He’s been able to rely on that experience when Counsell deploys him for more than one inning in an outing, which has occurred six times in his 35 appearances (37⅓ innings) through Thursday.
“He can be a fireman and put out a fire earlier in the game, or if it lines up he can set up (closer Devin Williams) as well,” Henderson said. “He’s got the ability here to be a valuable piece in any kind of bullpen.”
Payamps said regardless of whether and when he’s brought into a game, his mindset doesn’t change.
“You take it like any other inning and don’t try to change everything,” Payamps said. “You try not to put pressure on yourself, even if the situation might call for it. You just try to go out there, do your job to throw strikes, go after hitters and get outs.”
Payamps has pitched mostly in the sixth or seventh innings this season.
But when he has come through the biggest for the Brewers is when he enters with the score tied and runners on base; Payamps has allowed only one of the 13 inherited runners to score in those high-leverage situations.
Once viewed as a throw-in in that December trade, Payamps is enjoying his success.
The Brewers are, too.
“He’s performing at a high level. He’s probably pitched in the tightest situations consistently, other than Devin. He’s had a lot of success,” Counsell said after a game in early June. “I think we’ve got him in a good spot.”
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This article originally appeared on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Joel Payamps has become one of the Milwaukee Brewers’ top relievers