Well, not mine mind you, but perhaps the Pirates' pitching staff's for this year and beyond.
Although not as wonderful as the movie of the same name, I stumbled upon this article today that was exceptionally good.
In today's Trib, there was an in-depth article about how the Pirates are forcing pitchers to develop a changeup.
I couldn't agree more with the article. The changeup is a tremendous pitch to have. I used to love watching Pedro Martinez, back in the late 90's/early 2000's, making hitters look like complete jokes swinging at his change.
The entire article is fabulous, please read it, but here are some excerpts:
"Stark (farm director - edit) has implemented pitch-usage goals for each level of the minors. Pitchers must throw a specific number of changes in each outing, and each pitcher's plan is reviewed in three-outing increments.
If a pitcher is relying on another pitch at the expense of the changeup, he will not be allowed to throw that pitch for an inning or two in an outing."
"The Pirates also use a carrot-and-stick approach. Pitchers who do not throw enough changeups will be intentionally held back from promotions to the next level."
Brilliant again!!
"The Pirates have three basic rules for every pitcher in their system, from teenagers at the Dominican academy to the veterans in the majors.
Command the four-seam fastball. Pitch aggressively in the strike zone to contact. Master the changeup."
Ya gotta love what's gong on right now with the Pirates in their entire organization and the changes made since Neil Huntington took over, not just in personnel, but in mindset and the overall plan.
Excuse me now, as I go back to drinking my Pirates' Kool-Aid.
No comments:
Post a Comment