Blake Cederlind is making noise for the Pittsburgh Pirates, from his grunting on the mound when throwing a pitch to popping the catcher’s mitt with fastballs that can touch triple digits.
Derek Shelton called Cederlind one of the more fun things to watch in spring training after the Pirates manager watched him throw live batting practice for the first time.
“It’s loud,” Shelton said. “Watching the blonde hair flowing, and you get the sinker going. That was cool to see,” Shelton said. “The ball jumps out of his hand. … That’ll make you smile.”
Cederlind has had the Pirates smiling all spring, making a memorable impression that brought about a priceless prank and photos of the funny faces he makes when throwing a pitch.
But Cederlind is having the best laugh, seeing all of it as just noise.
“To me, it’s not a big deal,” Cederlind said. “I never had intentions of catching this much attention. I don’t look at it as much of a big deal. I hope it’s not a distraction. … I’m a little bit different of a guy, as some would say.”
A 6-foot-4, 215-pound right-hander, Cederlind has the look — and stuff — of a future closer and an impressive stat line to show for it. In 4 2/3 innings over five games this spring, he has yet to allow a hit or an earned run and has nine strikeouts and four walks.
What puts a big smile on Cederlind’s face is the idea he is a menace on the mound. A central California native, he brings a surfer’s style and a cool demeanor to baseball. But Cederlind knows all of the sights and sounds can be distracting.
“I guess there is a lot going on,” Cederlind said. “I don’t see it like that. I feel like I’m really calm out there. There could be a lot more movement going on, but I’ve got to tell myself to breathe and slow the game down. I don’t view it like that, but I hear it a lot that I’m kind of wild out there — wild, as in what I’m doing with my body.”
Pirates pitcher Derek Holland had fun with Cederlind’s wild style, ordering two dozen wigs for his teammates to wear for warm-ups before the Grapefruit League opener. Cederlind saw a group photo of his lookalikes on social media before arriving at LECOM Park, where the wigs were all over the clubhouse floor.
“That was awesome,” Cederlind said. “He’s a character, man. When I got here and saw all the wigs, I couldn’t stop laughing. I was cracking up.”
Cederlind has every intention of using it to his advantage, first by distracting hitters with his flowing hair and cacophony of noises and then by blowing pitches past them.
“Exactly,” Cederlind said. “That’s how it is: People see it as I’m maybe not necessarily all over the place, but there’s a lot going on. In my head, I’m dialed in.”
That’s what propelled the Pirates’ 2016 fifth-round draft choice to make a meteoric rise through their system last season, by harnessing command of his fastball and adding a power sinker. He started with seven games at high-A Bradenton, advancing to Double-A Altoona (42 strikeouts and 16 walks in 31 games) before finishing at Triple-A Indianapolis, where he had a 7.50 ERA in three games. Cederlind finished the year with 14 saves, 55 Ks and 24 walks, a 2.28 ERA and 1.18 WHIP.
“Cederlind has been really fun,” Pirates farm director Larry Broadway said, “because he had some struggles with strikes early in his career and really flipped the switch last year. He took it serious and really flourished the last 12 months.”
That caused the Pirates to protect Cederlind by placing him on the 40-man roster and inviting him to major league camp. He has wowed the coaching staff with his stuff. Cederlind claims he can throw the cutter in any count and now has a reliable out pitch with a two-seam fastball that has touched 102 mph.
This spring, Cederlind has made it loud and clear he has the makings of being a major league closer. He likely will start the season at Indianapolis but is aware a call-up could be coming sometime this season.
“Absolutely,” Cederlind said. “And, hopefully, one day it is. It would be cool.”
Not to mention noisy.
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