Brandon Villafuerte, a 1993 Live Oak graduate, has got the
relief roll mastered. Now he may have the chance to prove himself
at closer. Villafuerte is beginning his second year with the San
Diego Padres.
Brandon Villafuerte, a 1993 Live Oak graduate, has got the relief roll mastered. Now he may have the chance to prove himself at closer.
Villafuerte is beginning his second year with the San Diego Padres. After being called up from Triple-A late last season, Villafuerte was able to quickly fit in as a setup man for closer Trevor Hoffman.
But now Hoffman is expected to be out three months or more because of surgery on his right shoulder. That leaves the closing job wide open.
“Word has been going around that they might just go with a closer by committee,” Villafuerte said. “So basically it might be the whole pen doing the closer roll rather than just one guy depending on the situation and who’s coming up to bat.”
“If they want me to do it, I will do it,” Villafuerte added. “It they want me to fill another roll, I will do that as well. I have done basically everything out of the bullpen through my career. So it would be nothing new to me.”
Villafuerte took a step closer to getting that spot by recording his first save of the spring in a 7-6 victory over his former team, the Texas Rangers.
But it was a little shaky though. A walk, a single and a throwing error put runners at first and second with one out. But Villafuerte got a popup and a ground ball to end the game.
“I just got to work on throwing more strikes and getting ahead of hitters early and often,” Villafuerte said. “Hopefully I can continue what I was doing last year.”
When Trevor Hoffman went out the final two weeks of last season, Villafuerte became the closer and had one save opportunity.
Villafuerte’s worked his way through the minor league systems of the Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, Florida Marlins and New York Mets with only brief stints with the parent club.
He played 31 games and had a 1.41 ERA with the Padres last year on a minor league contract. But Villafuerte still hasn’t been assured of a spot on the team, although the chances are pretty good.
“It’s not locked up, but I have a good shot of either getting the closing job or being a part of the bullpen,” Villafuerte said. “I haven’t locked up a long term contract, so it is kind of a year to year performance with me. It is pretty exciting knowing coming in here knowing that there is a possiblity that I will be on the team.”
The Padres reported to camp on Feb. 14, but Villafuerte arrived on Feb. 1. This is the first year Villafuerte has known the players coming in.
“It is good to come to spring training and know the players,” Villafuerte said. “The past couple years with Detroit and with Texas I didn’t really know anyone.”
The young pitcher hopes to continue the success from last season.
“Last season went pretty good for me,” Villafuerte said. “I am just hoping I can continue to stay on the same path. I felt like everything fell in place last year when I got called up here.”
Villafuerte went through a relaxing but challenging offseason to get ready.
“It has been kind of easy,” Villafuerte said. “I went to play in Mexico for a month so I had a little baseball from the end of the season to now. I have been doing a lot running and hitting the weight room a lot. Just playing catch basically.”
Pitching strong day in and day out is the key to success, Villafuerte said.
“I am just looking for consistency,” Villafuerte said. “Especially up here, that is what they look for, coming in and doing it day in day out. If you are not consistent, they can’t really rely on you. I think consistency is a big key.”
The Padres should do well this year if the team can come together, Villafuerte said.
“It looks really good,” Villafuerte said. “We have a solid lineup – young pitching staff with good arms. It has a lot of potential if we all can put it together.”
The desire to continue to learn has made Villafuerte better.
“When I first started, I didn’t know too much about professional baseball,” Villafuerte said. “Through the nine years I have been playing, I have continued learning. Each year you learn a little more. That is the way it is for everyone. I think I’ve grown a lot and I have more of a understanding of the game and how to pitch.”
“Especially from high school, I am like a completely different pitcher,” Villafuerte added. “As you go along in this game, pitching coaches will tell you stuff. You can take what you want out of each person and try to do something that is comfortable and works for you.”
Villafuerte said his arm is feeling good, and he’s ready to go.
“I feel good right now,” Villafuerte said.
