Brayan Bello showcased a dynamic array of pitches during his rookie season with the Boston Red Sox in 2022.
Bello mostly relied on his upper-90s fastball along with a devastating change-up to keep opposing hitters off-balanced. He would mix in a slider as well, but the promising right-hander rarely tossed a curveball toward home plate. According to Baseball Savant, only five of the 997 pitches Bello threw were curves.
But as the 23-year-old readies himself to assume a larger role in the Red Sox starting rotation this upcoming season, Bello has set his mind on developing that pitch more over the course of the offseason.
"The curveball is what I've been working on," Bello said through a translator last month at Red Sox Winter Weekend. "It's a newer addition. Looking forward to using it."
While the curveball was a focal point for Bello, who started 11 games last season and posted a 2-8 record with a 4.71 ERA, he fine-tuned other pitches alongside Red Sox great Pedro Martinez. Bello spent time at Martinez's house this offseason learning under the tutelage of the Hall of Famer.
Martinez emphasized to Bello a couple of ways to attack hitters but didn't offer much insight into his devastating and renowned change-up.
"We actually didn't talk too much about the changeup," Bello said. "He was more focusing on the high fastball and sliders."
Any lessons Bello took from Martinez should benefit the youngster as he heads into Spring Training, which is only a couple of weeks away.
There's still plenty of buzz surrounding Bello with his potential upside delivering visions of him being an upper-echelon starter for the Red Sox for the foreseeable future. While Bello has been anointed with that praise, he isn't distracted by it as he continues to just work on the task at hand.
"Just not taking anything for granted this offseason," Bello said. "Going in with the same plan that I had last year and just working hard to be on that Opening Day roster."
