Enyel De Los Santos Has Turned Around Career With Guardians
When MLB Free Agency began in early December 2021, one of the first moves that Cleveland did under the new name was sign a free agent pitcher to a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training.
Not a major move that even some Guardians fans may have missed. This pitcher was Enyel De Los Santos who has become one of the key pieces in the Guardians bullpen and has completely turned his career around with the team.
De Los Santos pitched for both the Pirates and the Phillies in 2021 and ... wasn't great.
He put up a combined 6.37 ERA in 35.1 innings pitched and gave up a career-high 32 runs. Eight of those runs came via the long ball.
So it would make sense if this signing wasn't on everyone's radar.
But now De Los Santos is a key to piece to the Guardians bullpen and has been one of the best in the league, especially in the second half of the season.
He has a career-best 2.62 ERA and already tied his career high with 48 strikeouts with still about a month left to go in the season.
Another highlight of this year was his first career save. This came in a pivotal road trip against the juggernaut Los Angeles Dodgers.
One of the reasons for De Los Santos' dramatic turnaround may be due to his command. Last season he walked 18 batters but this year he's only given away 13 free passes. The fewer batters a pitcher walks, the better chance they have for a good outcome.
Whatever the Guardians figured out with Enyel, it worked beautifully. Even though they probably won't reviled their secrets, it's a great thing that they found him.
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