Francisco Liriano Minnesota Twins Memorabilia and Apparel

Francisco Liriano Majestic MLB Alternate Navy Replica Minnesota Twins Jersey - Small

Price: $90.00
Sale Price: $64.99

Francisco Liriano is a left-handed starting pitcher for the Minnesota Twins. Liriano was acquired by the Twins in a trade from the San Francisco Giants in 2005. Often compared to former teammate Johan Santana, another hard-throwing lefty, Liriano was touted as one of the "super-prospects" within the Minnesota Twins organization. In 2005, he led all minor league pitchers in strikeouts, with 204. Prior to undergoing elbow ligament replacement surgery late in the 2006 season, his fastball was often in the mid to high 90s, which combined with a ferocious slider and good change-up lead to a large number of strike outs. Since returning from Tommy John surgery his fastball has dropped a bit in velocity, typically ranging from the high eighties to low 90s, occasionally as high as 95. He throws a slider with less movement and velocity, as well as an occasional breaking ball in the mid 70s. Like his former Twins team mate, Johan Santana, he mixes in a strong change-up and racked up a large number of strike outs with it during the 2006 season. He can no longer utilize his slider as an out pitch because of the loss of movement and velocity. He has had to turn to hitting the corners with his fastball and changing pitch speed.