Joe Ryan had a solid rookie season, and reports are coming out of the Minnesota Twins camp that he’s improved his slider and added a new pitch. Is this the year he puts it all together and becomes the frontline starter the Twins have been looking for?

Ryan came to Minnesota as a part of the Nelson Cruz trade. The now 26-year-old is heading into his sophomore season with the Twins and will be looking to build off a promising rookie year.

In 2021, we saw him appear in five games and for the most part, he looked sharp. In his second major league start, he went seven innings and gave up one hit late in the game. He ended the year poorly against the Detroit Tigers, giving up six earned runs and raising his ERA from 2.45 to 4.05.

Ryan had his ups and downs in 2022, but he was one of the Twins’ better pitchers and more importantly, available to start every fifth day. He appeared in 27 games and posted a 13-8 record, with an ERA of 3.55.

Ryan doesn’t overpower hitters with his velocity, but he has good deception and control with his fastball. Last year he had a strikeout percentage of 25.0 percent and a walk rate of 7.8 percent.

His fastball averaged out around 92 mph, and he attacked hitters with that pitch 60 percent of the time. Rightfully so, as batters posted a .174 batting average against that pitch. It was his secondary and off-speed pitches that gave him the most trouble.

• 4-Seam Fastball: 60.1 Percent Frequency, .174 BA, .300 Slugging, 9 HR
• Slider: 20.7 Percent Frequency, .245 BA, .497 Slugging, 8 HR
• Changeup: 12.1 Percent Frequency, .277 BA, .492 Slugging, 3 HR
• Curveball: 7.1 Percent Frequency, .286 BA, .393 Slugging, 0 HR

Hitters couldn’t figure out his fastball, but they were taking advantage of his other pitches. Dan Hayes of The Athletic reported that Ryan improved his slider and added a split change to his arsenal.

His slider looked good in batting practice, and if he can continue that over a full season, Ryan will have at least two pitches he can rely on. If he recorded a 2.2 wins above replacement and an ERA of 3.55 in his rookie season with arguably one good pitch, Ryan will have a much better year with a new and improved slider.

Now entering another year, Ryan should be able to build off his successful rookie season. He’s going to continue to improve as he gains more repetitions against MLB batters. There’s a world where the former seventh-round pick has a much improved season and enters 2024 as the Twins’ No. 2 starter.