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By Chris Fuller
Kentucky Scouting Director

With the high school season at about the half way point, look for this Sunday Stance column on things we see while scouting games the remainder of the season. This first article takes a look at something we have seen repeatedly thus far this spring.

Every high school pitcher is in search of more velocity, and there are a number of things out there waiting for you that promise it. But how can you make your fastball better without picking up a single number on the radar gun? The answer is simple.

Throw the changeup.

I would venture to say I’ve seen close to 50 pitchers throw in games this spring. I can count on one hand the number of those pitchers who used a changeup effectively. Many didn’t throw one at all, with a number of them being guys with an average high school fastball.

Texas Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux once said this about the changeup. “The changeup is the almighty equalizer. If you don’t have velocity to beat guys, how do you make your fastball better? By being more effectively slow.”

So why can the changeup be such an effective pitch? The key is to throw it with the exact same arm speed and arm slot as your fastball and let the grip do the work. Good hitters pick the ball up out of the pitcher’s hand, recognizing the rotation of a breaking ball early. But a good changeup looks like a fastball coming out of the hand and appears to the hitter to be a fastball. When located down in the zone, a good changeup will generate swings and misses and induce weak contact. If you catch hitters trying to sit on the changeup, you just made your fastball appear to be faster than it actually is, thus opening up more of the inside part of the plate for you to work. And If you develop the confidence to throw the changeup on fastball counts, it is as devastating a pitch as there is in baseball.

The changeup is a “feel pitch”, meaning you need to develop a feel for throwing it. There is only one way to do that; throw it, throw it, and then throw it some more. Throw it repeatedly while tossing and get comfortable with the grip. Develop it in the bullpen until you get comfortable throwing it in a game. I realize that most of the time at the high school level a coach is calling your pitches, but you can’t expect him to have the confidence to call a pitch if you don’t have confidence in it yourself. Develop the pitch and let your coach know when you’re ready to throw it.

The changeup is the most underrated pitch in baseball. Add it as a weapon to your fastball/breaking ball mix. You’ll be glad you did.