Brandon Williamson is a small-town child seeking to make a mark in Cincinnati. Selected by Seattle within the second spherical of the 2019 draft out of Texas Christian University, the 25-year-old southpaw from Welcome, Minnesota (inhabitants: 701) was acquired by the Reds from the Mariners as half a six-player commerce previous to final season. Since making his MLB debut two months in the past, he has a 4.96 ERA and a 5.51 FIP over 11 outings comprising 52.2 innings.
His potential exceeds his modest efficiency so far. No. 9 on our preseason Reds Top Prospects record with a forty five FV, Williamson has, within the phrases of Eric Longenhagen, “a good shot to pitch toward the back of a contender’s rotation.” The velocity is nothing to jot down dwelling about — his heater is averaging a pedestrian 92.5 mph — however as our lead prospect analyst additionally famous, “His ability to mix [five] offerings in an unpredictable fashion still excites scouts.”
Williamson mentioned his arsenal and method when the Reds visited Boston on the finish of May.
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David Laurila: Based in your expertise, how do the Mariners and Reds evaluate by way of pitching growth?
Brandon Williamson: “At the end of the day, it’s still baseball. They’re both trying to get you to throw good pitches over the plate as much as possible. Both value strikeouts, but that’s unanimous around the game. There are maybe a few differences. The Mariners maybe target more shape. I guess that’s probably the biggest difference, targeting more shapes.”
Laurila: There’s much less concentrate on that with Cincinnati?
Williamson: “I wouldn’t necessarily say less, it’s more how they go about it. Seattle is very numbers and TrackMan-driven. Not that here isn’t. I guess you could say that here it’s more of a pitch-use, mechanical way. It’s more of a mix.”
Laurila: With mechanics in thoughts, I’ve learn that command has been a problem for you. Is that also a priority?
Williamson: “It hasn’t been all along. Last year… before that, I wasn’t a guy who walked a bunch of people. I don’t feel like it’s terrible. Is it an issue? You could say that, but it’s not like, ‘Oh my gosh, you can’t pitch.’ It’s more a matter of ‘How can I consistently use my stuff in the zone?’ It’s not that I’m wild, I just need to effectively throw all of my pitches in the zone and be able to repeat that.”
Laurila: Have mechanics been the largest concern when your command hasn’t been sharp?
Williamson: “It’s just inconsistencies in certain things. My mechanics could be inconsistent. My mindset on things could be inconsistent. I could be trying too many new things, too many different things. That’s the learning curve right now, doing things at a high level repeatably.”
Laurila: Can you give an instance of one thing you’ve tried to do in a different way?
Williamson: “Well, I’ve been throwing on the first base side of the rubber lately. That’s to give my cutter and slider more room and make them easier to land. The cutter is pretty new to me. I didn’t throw one until the last couple outings of last year and then didn’t really use it at all early this year. I just brought it back recently. I also throw a different grip slider now. That’s since late in spring training.”
Laurila: [Reds TV analyst] Chris Welsh instructed me that you just’ve dialed down your effort stage in current outings. I don’t recall his precise wording, however he mentioned that you just’d been attempting to drive velocity.
Williamson: “I mean, a few starts ago, in St. Louis, I was trying to do too much. I was trying to throw too hard. I was trying to really rip stuff and make it nasty. When you do that, it makes things worse. It makes [pitching] harder, not easier. So yeah, I’ve been trying to get to a point where I feel like I can still move fast and effectively, but at a slower pace.”
Laurila: Overthrowing normally hampers command, however what about motion? Has that been affected whenever you’ve tried to do an excessive amount of?
Williamson: “Not really. As long as you can keep that same intent throughout all of your pitches… the whole point of throwing as hard as you on can every pitch is that everything looks similar coming out of your hand. If you can do that while being in control of your body, it’s a good thing.”
Laurila: I recall studying that you just have been lacking above the zone together with your four-seamer fairly a bit final 12 months. Is that correct?
Williamson: “That’s very accurate. I’ve never tried to ride the baseball, but I throw it and it does ride. I get some cut, too, but there is ride.”
Laurila: Tell me extra about your slider and cutter.
Williamson: “I consider my cutter as a tough slider. I don’t like how gradual my sweeper is, though I do like how huge it’s. I additionally like having a tough one, and that’s the place we emphasize the cutter. I imply, we name it a cutter. Sometimes it’s extra of a slider — a tougher, cutter-ish one.
“With the sweeper, I’m getting probably eight more inches than I got with my old slider. It was usually around nine to eleven, and now it’s anywhere from 15 to 19. I learned it from Alon [Leichman], our assistant pitching coach. He showed me a grip, a few other things, and I started using it.”
Laurila: How would you outline your self as a pitcher? Are you extra energy, extra finesse…
Williamson: “I try to finesse with a thought process of power stuff. I want all of my pitches to be at least somewhat swing-and-miss. I throw five pitches, and most power guys don’t throw five pitches, so I guess I’m sort of like a hybrid between those. I think that all of my pitches, when they’re on, are really good. I don’t throw 98 [mph], but I do throw with a degree of power.”
Laurila: Grading your pitches, which might you say are above, or under, the others?
Williamson: “I don’t look at it like that. I grade them based on how they’re feeling and how I can use them in a game. I don’t think of one being better than another, it’s more of, ‘When you do you want to use them?’ and ‘Can I use them that day?’”
Laurila: You don’t have what you take into account a greatest pitch.
Williamson: “No. That would almost be unfair to the other ones. I like them all.”
Laurila: Kind of what folks typically say about youngsters.
Williamson: “Exactly. I like them the same.”
Content Source: blogs.fangraphs.com