Neftali Feliz to the bullpen

Posted by Matt Patterson

on June 24, 2009M at 4:11 pm

Prized pitching prospect Neftali Feliz will likely pitch an inning of relief in Thursday’s game against Round Rock. Feliz was in the bullpen during Wednesday’s game, a 3-2 win for the RedHawks.

“We’d like to see if he’s an option to help the major-league club in that role,” Rangers general manager Jon Daniels told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in an e-mail. “We still feel he may start for us in the future, but we’re going to go down this path first.”

Feliz has struggled at times as a starter this year. In his last 10 outings he’s pitched more than six innings just once, with two more outings going six innings.

The move seems like more of an experiment than a new direction for his career, though some believe he has the potential to be a dominant closer if he doesn’t flourish as a starter. Feliz’ fastball has been clocked at 103 mph this year.

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