FG on Fox: Dallas Keuchel’s Changing Repertoire

by
July 28, 2014

At different points in his career, Dallas Keuchel has thrown a slurve and a spike curve. Due to ineffectiveness and injury, he’s had to step down his usage of either breaking ball over his short career. But they’ll be back.

The first breaking ball Keuchel ever threw was a slurve back in high school. But when he got to college, pitching coach Dave Jorn showed him a three-finger change up grip. In what is almost a pitchfork style grip, Keuchel’s thumb doesn’t touch the ball. Perhaps it’s that loose grip that’s given him the third-largest horizontal movement on his change among lefty starters in the game.

KeuchelChange
The pitchfork grip that launched a career.

Along with his low-90s sinker, that change gave him enough weapons to get by without using his breaking pitch much in college.

That arsenal served him well, but felt he needed a breaking pitch. He had “lost feel for the slurve” he used to have while in high school and so he “came up with a couple spike grips.” One won out, and it helped him advance through the minor leagues. It was good enough.

Read the rest on Just a Bit Outside.

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With a phone full of pictures of pitchers' fingers, strange beers, and his two toddler sons, Eno Sarris can be found at the ballpark or a brewery most days. Read him here, writing about the A's or Giants at The Athletic, or about beer at October. Follow him on Twitter @enosarris if you can handle the sandwiches and inanity.

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