A Conversation With Kansas City Royals Right-Hander Brady Singer

Brady Singer isn’t exactly a square peg in a round hole, but he is atypical among modern-day hurlers. At a time where high heater is all the rage, the 24-year-old Kansas City Royals right-hander prefers to hunt groundballs, and he does so almost exclusively with a two-pitch mix. Moreover, his velocity is middling. Singer’s tailing two-seamer averaged a bit over 93 mph last year, while his slurvy slider was 10 mph south of that mark.

And then there was his take rate. Legendary Detroit Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell used to say that a batter, “Stood there like the house by the side of the road and watched that one go by,” and the phrase could have been used often with the former Florida Gator toeing the rubber. Among pitchers to throw at least 40 innings, only Lance McCullers Jr. logged a lower Z-Swing% than did Singer.

Drafted 18th-overall by the Royals in 2018, Singer finished his 2020 rookie campaign with a 4.06 ERA, a 4.08 FIP, and a 53.1% groundball rate over a dozen starts. His K/9 — this despite a pitch-to-contact MO — was a solid 8.53. Filled with confidence, Singer is comfortably slotted in the middle of the Royals rotation for the 2021 season.

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David Laurila: How do you self-identify as a pitcher?

Brady Singer: “I’m a sinker guy. I’m one of the few sinker guys that are still around. The big thing now, with analytics, is four-seamers up in the zone with a lot of ride. I’m fully two-seamers. I can make it run, and I can make a sink. I guess I’m one of the guys that hasn’t adapted to the major analytic standpoint. Basically, I like to move the ball around a lot.”

Laurila: What are your thoughts on analytics?

Singer: “I feel like we’re in a weird point of baseball with what works the best. Analytics are obviously taking over the game, but that’s good too. We’re learning a lot of new things, and at the same time, I think hitters give us the most feedback. For me, the sinker, the two-seamer is a huge thing. And the mental side, too. One thing you don’t want to do is give in, and I don’t. I’m really competitive. I love the one-on-one battles with the hitters.”

Laurila: You referred to your go-to pitch as a sinker, but also as a two-seamer. If you had to call it one thing, what would that be?

Singer: “At this stage, I’d probably call it more of a two-seamer. Sometimes I get on the side of the ball and it takes off and runs on me more than it sinks. But when I really get on top of the ball, I can make it sink a little bit more. So I kind of toy with it.”

Laurila: In essence, it’s two different pitches…

Singer: “Yeah. And it changes planes when I throw it up, too. Sometimes it will take off and almost rise, or I’ll stay behind it and have ride. Sometimes I’m meaning to do it, and sometimes I’m not. It kind of just does different things, but at times I can really control it, really make it do what I want.”

Laurila: But it’s always a two-seamer, right? Never a four-seamer?

Singer: “Correct. It’s never a four-seamer.”

Laurila: Is your breaking ball a slider?

Singer: “Yeah, it’s a slider, but you can call it what you want. Some guys have a true curveball and a true slider, but I kind of have that slurve mix. Lately I’ve been able to stay on top of the ball more and get a lot more depth to it. I wouldn’t call it a curveball, but I would definitely call it more of a depth-y slider… especially when I’m trying to go under a barrel. That’s to any hitter. Sometimes I’m trying to throw it right on top of the plate, looking for that depth to almost bounce it. Then, when I’m going in to a lefty, or away from a righty, I can get more of that slider action to it. So I guess I could call it two different pitches, but that would just be confusing for the catcher. I can manipulate it, but there’s not a major difference to where the catcher needs to know.”

Laurila: How important is deception to your game?

Singer: “If we’re talking about deception with the windup, I think the ball kind of jumps out of my hand. Maybe it seems harder than it actually is? It’s a quick windup and everything is kind of coming at you at once, so you don’t really have much time to react. I love the windup. I think it keeps me in rhythm really well. I’m able to repeat my mechanics, and it’s kind of a different view for the hitters.”

Laurila: How would you describe your arm angle?

Singer: “Some people call it three-quarters, but I think it was a lot more three-quarters my freshman and sophomore years of college. I’ve raised it up a little bit, so I’d say it’s a probably higher-three-quarters now. It’s definitely not over the top. But we were talking about the sinker, and I can make that ball sink more when I kind of get my arm up a little higher and get on top of the ball.”

Laurila: Outside of slightly raising your arm angle, have you pretty much always been the same pitcher?

Singer: “Yeah, and that’s something I’ve always wanted. I think that’s kind of where injuries come into play too, when you try to change what you are. I think having a natural arm slot… that’s what your body is supposed to do. Changing that around and trying to make a different arm path away from your body’s natural ability makes you prone to injury. Some guys have done it and had great success, but that’s kind of my philosophy on it.”

Laurila: What about the two-seamer? Has that always been there?

Singer: “Yes, the whole time. I’ve never been a four-seam guy. I did try the four-seamer in High-A a couple years ago, but then I started to lose the two-seamer, and I don’t want to lose the two-seamer. That’s why I’m here, it’s how I got this far, so I got rid of [the four-seam]. Plus, the only reason for the four-seamer was to throw it up in the zone, and I learned how to control the two-seamer up in the zone.”

Laurila: Is there anything unique about your grips?

Singer: “They’re pretty traditional. The two-seamer is right in the middle of the laces. It’s not offset, or anything like that. It’s just straight up in the middle, and I try to put more pressure on the index finger to get the ball running more arm-side. The slider is a pretty much a conventional slider grip.”

Laurila: Why did you get so many takes last year? I assume you’ve seen the data on that?

Singer: “I actually haven’t, but I think the fastball glove-side, both to lefties and to righties, is getting me a lot of those takes. I’m throwing it almost front hip. I’m getting on the side of the ball and kind of front-hipping the lefties to where the ball is coming at them, then sneaks back in. With the righties, too. It’s a pitch I love to start off the plate and have sneaks back onto the corner. I’ve also gotten some good takes on the backdoor slider. I can keep it away from lefties and then kind of sneak it in there at the last minute, landing it for a strike.”

Laurila: Another thing that stands out is your BABIP, which at .260 was quite low. Looking at it objectively, did you maybe pitch in a little bit of good luck last year, or was it well-earned?

Singer: “I think it was well-earned. It’s what I’m trying to do. I’m trying to get contact. What I want is groundballs, and getting out of the innings quick. I’m not too worried about strikeouts. Strikeouts just kind of come for me. I’m worried about going out there and getting deep into the game, trying to be a horse and throwing a lot of innings. So I’m trying to force contact, especially with runners on. I want groundballs and double plays.

“There are obviously times you want to go for a strikeout, but I’ve never a crazy strikeout guy. If I go out there trying to strike everyone out, I’ll have 60 pitches through three innings. I don’t want to run away from who I am, which is contact.”

Laurila: A lot of people feel you need to add a quality third pitch. What are your thoughts on that?

Singer: “You know, it’s weird. I’ve heard that since my junior year of high school. I feel I’ve done pretty well with two pitches. Something that’s kind of overlooked… like we were talking about earlier: I’m manipulating the two pitches I do have. I’m changing around both my slider and two-seamer, and I’m not just throwing them in the same spots.

“But the third pitch is coming. I probably threw my changeup five times a game last year, sometimes maybe 10 times. I had good success with it, so it’s there. But you get into the competitive nature of winning so bad that you don’t really want to work on something. It’s something I’m trying to do in spring training — work on that third pitch more than ever — but again, it’s really hard. You’re trying to win every single game, and don’t like to be throwing your third-best pitch up there.”

Laurila: What is your changeup grip right now?

Singer: “It’s across the two seams. I’m kind of getting on the inside of the middle finger, and kind of more on the ring finger as well. I used to be really dominant on the middle finger, and it didn’t have much action to it. Being more on the inside of the middle finger, I’m seeing a lot more action.”

Laurila: You’re more focused on movement that on velocity-differential…

Singer: “Yes. I was so worried about the velo. The fastball is 92 [mph], my changeup is 87… but guys are doing it. Zack Greinke does it. Felix Hernandez. All these guys have these power changeups. It’s not a bad thing at all; I just need to get the action right. I need to get it to where I’m getting groundballs. That’s what my game is.”