""I missed starting probably the first half of my career, but once I really started closing, I didn't think about it as much," Helsley said. "Learning a new pitch would be something I could pick up, obviously, but it'd be a learning curve throughout this first year to figure out how to be a major league starting pitcher." Helsley said he "(knows what he's) capable of as a reliever," even as he expressed confidence that he could be a starter."
"As he pointed out, he'd certainly need to expand his repertoire to start. Helsley has been almost exclusively fastball-slider against hitters of either handedness. He sporadically mixes in a curveball but has never thrown a changeup or cutter with regularity. He'd probably need to add one of those offerings to keep left-handed hitters off balance. Helsley has done a good job against lefties over the course of his career, but that'd be a lot more challenging if needs to navigate a lineup multiple times with lesser stuff than he can throw when he's only working one inning."
Ryan Helsley has received contact from roughly 15 major-league clubs, with the Chicago Cubs and Detroit Tigers identified as known suitors. Detroit has explored converting Helsley to a starter despite his lack of major-league starts and last full-time starting experience in 2018 at Double-A and Triple-A. Helsley says he is open to starting but remains comfortable closing and believes in his abilities as a reliever. He acknowledges that starting would require adding a new pitch and a learning curve in the first year. Helsley's repertoire has been primarily fastball and slider, with occasional curveballs and little changeup or cutter usage.
Read at MLB Trade Rumors
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