A little over a year removed from Tommy John surgery and after a hard offseason of work with acclaimed pitching guru Hector Berríos, Vladimir Gutiérrez is drawing a lot interest from major league teams. The current free agent has a showcase in the not-so-distant future for various big league clubs.
The right-hander from Pinar del Río, Cuba is working out freakishly and is on a pace to flash his electric repertoire for MLB ballclubs during his showcase. Gutiérrez throws a mid-90’s fastball and also has an array of sharp breaking pitches in his arsenal. His slider and curveball are good setup pitches for his heater, while his changeup is elite.
Free agent pitcher @vladimi83418418 preparing for future showcases for major league teams. There are several @MLB ballclubs interested in the Cuban's services.
#CubanBaseballDigest #MLB pic.twitter.com/7wbOQmXxPD
— Cuban Baseball Digest (@CBaseballDigest) December 23, 2023
In his two year big league career he sports a record of 10-12, 5.44 earned run average and has struck out 117 batters in 150 ⅔ innings of work. The 28-year-old Gutiérrez still shows a lot of promise and if he returns to his 2021 form could be a future anchor for a pitching staff in the big show.
During that 2021 season the hurler posted a 9-6 record, 4.74 earned run average and 88 strikeouts in 22 starts. His performance netting him some votes in the Rookie of the Year balloting during that campaign. Depending on which MLB team’s eye he catches during his presentation will depend on what roster we will see the Cuban righty this spring.