Jhoan Duran's revised 4-seam fastball key to his resurgence, reliever of the month award

New York Times

2 days ago

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Many factors are involved in the early-season resurgence that led Jhoan Duran to earn reliever of the month honors Tuesday, but it's hard to dismiss the impact of a revamped four-seamer.
Though the dip in average velocity of Duran's fastball over the years is well documented, the Minnesota Twins reliever is using a new grip to throw his heater as much as ever and with better results than in any of his big-league seasons aside from his rookie year (2022).
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Duran, who became the first Twins reliever to be named the American League's reliever of the month since Joe Nathan in June 2009, is 4-1 with nine saves, a 0.99 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 27 1/3 innings this season. He posted a 0.60 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 15 innings in May en route to joining Nathan, a three-time winner who is the only other Twins pitcher to be named reliever of the month.
THE JHOAN AND ONLY 🔥
Congratulations to Jhoan Duran on being named the @MLB AL Reliever of the Month for May! pic.twitter.com/BouDRu3N2w
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) June 3, 2025
Whereas a season ago Baseball Savant said Duran's fastball carried a negative-1 Run Value en route to a career-worst 3.64 ERA, this season it's plus-4 and pairing nicely with a plus-6 splinker, a plus-1 sweeper and a solid curveball.
'He's been doing his job at a very high level all year long,' Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said. 'He's used all of his pitches. They've all been pretty consistent. He's been able to get ahead with all three and then use all three in the middle and late in the counts, too. The fact that he's spreading it out so well, it means that they have to respect everything.'
First and foremost, Duran's turnaround is rooted in good health and a strong offseason program that resulted in his losing 12 pounds. Though he's known for having a good work ethic, Duran said too many events disrupted his offseason preparation ahead of 2024. This winter, Duran spent the entire offseason in the Dominican Republic adhering to the same rigorous conditioning program he used in 2023.
Beyond the lesser conditioning, Duran suffered an oblique injury in spring training 2024, which he and Twins coaches believe hampered his performance into the middle of last summer.
This year, Duran isn't just fit; he's physically moving well, which means no disruptions. It also has him in a place to more easily make adjustments and experiment.
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One of those experiments is trying a different grip on his four-seamer, which he's previously used, pitching coach Luis Ramirez said. Duran and Ramirez believe the new grip has increased the amount of run on his four-seamer from 12.3 inches in 2024 to 13.6 inches this season, action that is leading Duran to trust his four-seamer more.
'The other grip I have, it feels comfortable, but it doesn't have too much (run) on it,' Duran said. 'Luis told me, 'If you grab it like this, maybe it'll have more (run).' We can try it. We tried, and I feel (better). The ball is moving really good. I throw a lot of fastballs right in the middle, and they're hitting groundballs. In the past when I missed fastballs in the middle, it was a homer or a double.'
Based on previous usage, Ramírez, who has worked with Duran since he was a minor leaguer, knew the pitcher would be open to incorporating the grip again. Duran said he has simply flipped the seams on the ball to the other side of his grip.
'We kind of go back and forth depending on the movement and locations, depending on, 'Am I comfortable?'' Ramírez said. 'Obviously, this grip gives him better carry. This grip gives him a little better movement.'
Being able to command the fastball better is critical for the rest of Duran's mix. This season, he's throwing his four-seamer in the strike zone 57.5 percent of the time, up from 53.5 percent a year ago. He's also able to trust the run will allow him to throw it in more hittable locations without the fear of an opponent crushing it.
A year ago, Duran didn't throw his four-seamer with as much conviction, which allowed opponents to sit on his splinker and curveball more often.
'The biggest thing between last year and this year is just command of the four-seam,' Twins reliever Griffin Jax said. 'The splitter's always been there. But last year, I don't think he was commanding his four-seam at all. They'd just be sitting splinker and hit it into the ground, and a lot of those found holes last year.'
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Indeed, hitters are doing far less damage on Duran's splinker.
Last season, opponents had a .363 slugging percentage against Duran's splinker, a figure that has dipped to .189 in 2025. As a result, Duran has increased his splinker usage to 35.6 percent from 31.4 percent last year.
Throw in his curveball and a sweeper he's started to use more, and Duran can attack hitters in a variety of ways. Entering Tuesday, opponents were hitting .172/.261/.182 against Duran versus .235/.305/.363 a year ago.
'He's really pitching well right now, and it's not just the heater that's improved,' Baldelli said. 'Everything is in a good spot right now. He's just mixing and getting ahead and then putting guys away. He's doing it all.'