BRADENTON, Fla. — Rather than changing Tyler Glasnow's throwing mechanics after too many pitches had drifted over the middle this spring, Ray Searage wanted the right-handed starting pitcher to stick to a simple, organization-wide approach: Throw inside.
The result, this after an 11.74 ERA through his first three starts, was six strikeouts, two walks and one earned run over 4 2/3 innings to start the Pirates' 2-1 loss to the Red Sox on Sunday at LECOM Park.
He was pulled in the fifth after allowing an RBI double to Mookie Betts, but he kept opponents off-balance for much of the outing. It all began inside.
"For a guy like me who doesn’t have super-pinpoint control, it puts a little fear in the batter," Glasnow said of pitching inside. "My first few outings I was only going away and throwing that curveball, so that shoulder would leak, leak, leak, leak and everything out over the plate was easy to hit, so going in there and opening them up opens up both sides of the plate for me. I can kind of get away with a little bit more."
A lack of control has made Glasnow ineffective in the major leagues. He had a 7.45 ERA, a WHIP close to 2, a .373 BABIP, 50 strikeouts and 29 walks in 15 starts at the beginning of last season, leading to his demotion to Triple-A in June.
He can get away with leaving pitches over the plate or out of the zone when facing minor leaguers, though. In 15 starts at Triple-A Indianapolis, Glasnow had a 1.93 ERA with a 0.95 WHIP in 93 1/3 innings. He averaged 13.5 strikeouts and only 3.1 walks per nine innings.
But major leaguers often wait for him to prove he can throw strikes, as evidenced by his last start when the Blue Jays scored six earned runs on six hits in 2 2/3 innings. Glasnow can't survive on "stuff" alone, but pitching inside can mask some of his weaknesses and he proved it Sunday against a lineup of proven major leaguers.
He struck out Xander Bogaerts with a rising four-seam fastball at 97 mph after mixing in his curveball and changeup. Glasnow then froze Sam Travis with an inside four-seam fastball for a called third strike in the second inning. The strategy also allowed him to produce weak contact, as the Red Sox had four groundouts against Glasnow.
"I believe the elite players in the game, whether it’s hitters or pitchers, they do work the inside part of the plate," Hurdle said. "Elite hitters can hit the ball in. Elite pitchers can go in for strikes, can go in off the plate and can move people when they have to. That’s one of the parts that’s developing for Tyler."
Despite the promising result, Glasnow continued to struggle using his changeup. The pitch will be necessary for him to be anything more than a relief pitcher, as his four-seam fastball and curveball won't be enough to face a lineup three times in one game.
He's expected to begin the season in the Pirates' bullpen as a long relief option in what Hurdle and Neal Huntington described as an apprenticeship. The idea is that Glasnow can learn in the major leagues, rather than returning to Triple-A, where he's already proven himself.
Despite Glasnow's struggles this spring, Huntington told reporters last week that the 6-foot-8 former fifth-round pick has looked better than any of his previous opportunities facing big league hitters.
"Tyler continues to flash the signs of what everybody that sees him in Triple-A says he can do, " Huntington said last week. "He can dominate a lineup, and he can dominate for three outs, he can dominate for 18 outs in Triple-A. ... We're still excited about what he can be and the flashes we've seen this spring have been really (better than) at any point he's had major-league opportunity. We just need to build on those."
Glasnow's fourth start of the spring was a sign of potential progress, but it didn't elicit much emotion. His quick rise through the minor leagues was followed by a steep climb to stay in the majors. Glasnow's singular focus is building on this latest start, rather than regressing again.
"It’s still early," Glasnow said. "Everyone is working on stuff, but I guess that’s encouraging."