Cardinals starting pitcher Matthew Liberatore has velocity drop that may jeopardize his starting role
Cardinals starting pitcher Matthew Liberatore’s Tuesday night started like a masterpiece — three crisp innings, sharp command, and Busch Stadium buzzing. But one 442-foot blast (the longest homer in the park all year) flipped the script. By the time the dust settled, the St. Louis Cardinals were staring at a 3-0 loss to the Colorado Rockies, and Liberatore was left searching for answers to explain the velocity drop.
“It was great until it wasn’t,” he told MLB.com’s John Denton. And really, that could be the headline for his season.
After winning a rotation spot back in Spring Training, the lefty opened the year with a steady 3.70 ERA through his first 17 starts. Lately, though? It’s been rocky. Over his last five outings, Liberatore’s ERA has ballooned to 5.95 and he hasn’t made it past the 4.1-inning mark in any of them.
A fast ball that isn’t so fast
The culprit might be sitting right there on the radar gun. On Tuesday, his four-seamer topped out at 95.4 mph early. But by the fourth inning, it had dipped to 91.7 mph. Three straight Rockies reached base in that frame, and suddenly the early momentum vanished
“I felt awesome through the first three innings,” Liberatore said. “Then [velocity] dropped again and guys started taking better swings… I feel bad putting it on the bullpen. That’s not who I want to be.”
He exited after allowing two baserunners to open the fifth, both of whom came around to score. The line: four innings, three runs, and more questions about whether he can hold a starting role with a major velocity drop on his fastball.
Manager Oli Marmol and pitching coach Dusty Blake already tried giving him extended rest over the All-Star break, but the velo drop remains. Liberatore isn’t looking to move to the ‘pen, though.
“I don’t know if there’s anything I’ve ever wanted more than to be a big league starter,” he said.
The talent is there, the desire is clear — but unless the Cardinals find a way to keep that fastball humming, Liberatore’s 2025 might lead him to no longer being a starting pitcher for the Cardinals with his epithet reading: great until it wasn’t.
