Upside, downside of controversial quick pitch on display in World Series
NEW YORK -- When Alex Gordon produced the biggest moment so far in the World Series — his tying home run in the ninth inning of Game 1 — he benefited from a bit of information he picked up instances earlier about Jeurys Familia’s propensity for quick-pitching.
The next day, Kansas City Royals right-hander Johnny Cueto befuddled the New York Mets in a 7-1 victory by mixing in quick pitches with his assortment of twisting and turning windups.
Suddenly, an obscure pitcher’s tactic on the margin of the rules has gained prominence on baseball’s biggest stage.
Three practitioners of the quick pitch — Cueto, Mets closer Familia and bullpen mate Hansel Robles — have seen action in the World Series, which resumes Friday at Citi Field with Kansas City holding a 2-0 lead. All three have other weapons that make them effective, but they like mixing in quick pitches because they can disrupt a hitter’s timing, especially for those who rely on leg kicks.
Even after getting beaten on a 97-mph sinker he tried to sneak by Gordon, Familia told Paste BN Sports he’s not about to change his ways.
“I’ve always used the quick pitch,” Familia said in Spanish. “I used it this season and I’ve had good results with it. I’m not going to stop using it because of what happened (in Game 1).”
The quick pitch — throwing the ball without coming to a set, which pitchers are allowed to do only with the bases empty — can be a double-edged sword because some pitchers lose command in the process.
Familia said that’s not the case with him because he has plenty of experience with the practice, although he did leave the pitch to Gordon over the middle of the plate, and it got crushed for a 428-foot homer that allowed the Royals to come back in an eventual 5-4 victory in 14 innings.
Players get detailed scouting reports about the tendencies of their postseason opponents and go over them in meetings with the coaches, but Gordon acknowledged he wasn’t aware Familia employed the quick pitch until he saw him use it against the previous batter, Salvador Perez.
“When I get up there I usually like to get loose, but I got ready right away just to make sure,” Gordon said. “With nobody on, it’s part of baseball. They’re trying to get you out any way that they can. We’ve got a guy that does it too, with Cueto. It works both ways, and you’ve just got to be ready for it.”
The tactic has drawn the ire of some hitters, especially those who like to settle in and move the bat around in the batter’s box before the pitch comes in. The rules state the pitcher can’t throw the ball until the batter is ready, but what constitutes readiness is subject to interpretation.
In late August, the Philadelphia Phillies’ dugout and especially coach Larry Bowa became incensed when Robles threw a pitch to first baseman Darin Ruf when he wasn’t looking. The pitch was disallowed.
“Is quick-pitching fair? I don’t know,” Mets outfielder Michael Cuddyer said. “I don’t know how to regulate if you were going to make a change, because you could argue it’s part of the windup. I guess by definition as long as the hitter’s ready, you’re fine. Do I like it? No, of course I don’t like it. As a hitter, I don’t like it at all.”
Increasingly, pitchers do. Cuddyer and teammate Curtis Granderson said they’re seeing more quick-pitching, with the latter pointing out it’s an advantage for the pitcher even when the hitter is aware it might be coming, because he doesn’t know when.
Cueto did not blow away the Mets in his two-hit complete game Wednesday, but his assortment of cutters, sinkers, changeups and curveballs — thrown from different angles and motions — induced lots of soft contact.
“It was effective for me,” Cueto said. “The quick pitch is a weapon to keep batters off-balance.”
Both World Series managers — the Royals’ Ned Yost and the Mets’ Terry Collins — vouched for the legitimacy of the maneuver, saying it’s up to the batter to do his homework and not be caught by surprise. Of course, both have pitchers who use it, which might influence their opinion.
For the hitters, beaten down by recent years of offensive decline and mounting strikeouts, the stratagem represents yet another hardship in an increasingly pitching-inclined game.
“Hitting is a timing thing, so it throws off the timing,” Royals outfielder Lorenzo Cain said. “You might be out front just a hair or be a little late. It definitely makes a difference, especially when guys are throwing 96 mph."
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