I was thinking back to a game a few years ago between the New York Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers in Milwaukee.
Randy Johnson was throwing up to 98 mph, but with poor location, and he ended up losing, going only six innings while throwing more than 120 pitches. Not very efficient.
The bright spot in that game was seeing Matt Wise, the Brewers set-up guy, pitch two perfect innings with three strikes outs to some of the best hitters in the game.
His equalizer was his changeup. His fastball was 86 to 90 mph, mostly 87 to 88 mph. His changeup, his best pitch runs from 65 to 81 mph, mostly around 70.
A Great Changeup Can Even the Playing Field
He did not throw one breaking ball. So, he used a mediocre or low-grade fastball, but an outstanding changeup against the best hitters in the game.
He struck out Jorge Posada, Gary Sheffield, and Alex Rodriguez on changeups. Sheffield nearly came out of his shoes. Rodriguez missed one by a foot. Posada never moved, and just stood there as it hit the glove. The other three outs were two weak fly balls and a long fly ball by Derek Jeter.
He only used fastball and changeup against the best hitters in the world.
Watching that was fun.
Wise, whose dominating pitch is that changeup was among the league leaders in strikeouts by throwing mostly between 70 and 88 mph.
Velocity not the Only Aspect of Pitching
There are thousands of high school and college pitchers out there who are focused on one thing, velocity. Then comes developing a nasty slider or splitter.
There are scouts out there who will sit up and take notice to a pitcher who has a dominating changeup with less than dominating stuff. But, the problem is that having a mediocre fastball requires command.
But, who is working on developing the dominating changeup? Not many.
Who is working on developing dominating command? Not many.
It’s all about the velocity.
I suggest that pitchers start developing that changeup early, preferably in Little League, because it’s tough to get the feel of that pitch later as can be demonstrated by seeing so few outstanding changeups in the big leagues.
I personally never threw a breaking ball in either high school or college, and didn’t learn how to throw a curveball until my first year of pro ball.
I did have an outstanding changeup, and ended up with an above-average curveball.
A changeup sure beats throwing a slider, which is a killer on the elbow. A curveball is a much better pitch but is tougher to learn. I think when professional baseball understands this, you will start seeing more changeups, fewer sliders, and more curveballs.
The Yankees would much rather have seen a 95 mph fastball slider guy. But, they got Wise with the “equalizer.” He made every at bat so uncomfortable for the Yankees. You could see it on their faces.
Fastball location and changing speeds are #1 and #2 for pitching success. Movement and velocity come in #3 and #4.
Recently, I watched the final game of the College World Series and watched the Cal State Fullerton pitcher go a complete game for the win throwing mostly a mediocre fastball, but with an outstanding changeup. I saw him only throw one or two breaking balls the entire game.
There is no Little League or high school pitcher who needs a breaking ball when you can pitch like Matt Wise. When you have the “equalizer”—a dominating changeup.
Yet, how many pitchers in Little League, high school, and college do you see throwing changeups? Very, very few.
Even at the Little League level, I hear of coaches and private instructors teaching kids sliders, cutters and, of course, curveballs.
Somehow, coaches and instructors are not watching the same game I am watching.
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