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Seemed a bit like Pelf was throwing a BUNCH of sliders yesterday... and he struck out 6 batters in 5 (laboring) innings. Not only that, but as per Gameday/PitchFX, 5 of those strikeouts came via the slider (the Stephen Drew backwards-K in the first being the only non-slider fan).
Does this mean Pelf might finally be wending his way toward an offspeed pitch that (A) contrasts effectively with his throwin'-the-speedball-by-ya and (B) is beyond show-me stage? As per AA's Eric Simon, the answer may well be [url=http://www.amazinavenue.com/2009/8/3/973485/mike-pelfrey-may-have-found-his]yes[/url].
| ]The conclusion here seems to be a positive one. Pelfrey's slider has demonstrably more horizontal break than before, especially on some big pitches yesterday...
... I have one more theory about Pelf. If the best sliders tail away from the hitter, wouldn't it help for Pelfrey's fastball to tail into the hitter, potentially exaggerating the break of the slider in the hitter's mind? Carlos Marmol has one the nastiest sliders in the game, with 4.9 inches of average horizontal break, 3 more than Pelfrey. When you consider, however, that Pelfrey's two-seamer breaks 2.3 inches more away from the batter than Marmol's four-seamer, the difference may seem minimal to the batter who's looking for the two-seamer. |
If true, a promising-- if subtle-- sign of progress.
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