How 2012 is still affecting Roy Halladay
After a 9-2 loss to the Braves, Halladay declared it is time for aggressiveness. "I can't take three or four pitches to put guys away," he said. What he said and what he did, though, were opposites.
How 2012 is still affecting Roy Halladay
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
ATLANTA — For a team that claims it cares little about pitch velocity, the Phillies are not adept at hiding the truth. When Roy Halladay made a minor-league start this spring, pitching coach Rich Dubee peeked at the radar gun after every pitch. Manager Charlie Manuel frequently speaks of Halladay's velocity and its eventual improvement.
And the pitcher himself, the man who said he does not stare at radar guns or pay any semblance of attention to velocity readings, now concedes his slowed velocity bred bad habits.
"I was just trying to be too picky, too fine," Halladay said of his 2013 debut outing. "Last year, feeling the way you do, you think, 'I can't throw an 86 m.p.h. fastball to a general zone, it's going to get hit.' So you get to the point where you start to get picky."
After a 9-2 loss to the Braves, Halladay declared it is time for aggressiveness. "I can't take three or four pitches to put guys away," he said. The 35-year-old pitcher thinks he can expand the strike zone and once again throw his cutter and sinker to both sides of the plate.
What he said and what he did, though, were opposites. Halladay threw 21 fastballs during his 40-pitch first inning. He threw 26 fastballs in the subsequent 55 pitches. Every one of the nine strikeouts he recorded was done on an off-speed pitch. The four run-scoring hits against Halladay came on fastballs.
The opposing pitcher, Paul Maholm, saw 12 pitches in two at-bats. He did not swing and miss once. He fouled off three pitches. He worked a two-ball count and a three-ball count.
Against even the pitcher, Halladay nibbled.
"I've always relied on movement and not tried to pick sides of the plate," Halladay said. "And there were times where we were picking corners of the plate. I need to open it up and let the movement take care of itself."
Or, as Halladay said about his lack of velocity in 2012, "When you’re throwing pitches at that speed, they get such a good look at it that it has to be on the black."
Halladay said arm strength is "continuing to grow every time I pitch." If it was lacking in 2012, the first start of 2013 is not encouraging. The difference in velocity from his season debut in 2012 to 2013 is negligible. But Halladay wants an improvement from 2012 so he can avoid being picky.
| April 5, 2012 | |||
| PITCH | AVG VELO | #THROWN | #STRIKES |
| Curve | 77.0 | 21 |
14 |
| Cutter | 89.1 | 54 |
40 |
| Change | 81.8 | 12 |
9 |
| Sinker | 90.2 |
5 |
2 |
Halladay threw eight innings (92 pitches) against Pittsburgh in his 2012 debut. Fifty-nine, or 64 percent, of his pitches were fastballs, according to Pitch F/X data. His velocity in that first start mirrored his eventual season averages. What changed later in the season was a lack of movement on his sinker and cutter.
| April 3, 2013 | |||
| PITCH | AVG VELO | #THROWN | #STRIKES |
| Curve | 77.8 | 27 | 12 |
| Cutter | 88.3 | 32 | 22 |
| Change | 81.5 | 20 | 12 |
| Sinker | 89.6 | 15 | 8 |
A year later, we see a different pitcher. Now, just half of his 95 pitches are fastballs. Halladay threw his curveball 56 percent of the time he was ahead of a righthanded hitter. He threw it 53 percent of the time when he reached two strikes against a righty. Last season, those percentages were 30 and 34, respectively. He threw his change-up 45 percent of the time to a lefty with two strikes. That was 17 percent in 2012.
He did not throw one cutter to a righty with two strikes. That was something he did 27 percent of the time in 2012.
The velocity, which has declined every season since 2009, is even lower — if just by a tick. That strength Halladay spoke of may come, but his fastball velocity from his previous three season debuts was a predicator of his season averages.
Perhaps most notable, Halladay's vertical release point was lower than usual Wednesday night. Last spring, when scouts first questioned Halladay's health, they focused on his lower arm slot as evidence. His release point Wednesday was lower than in 2012. It affects the angle Halladay achieves on his pitches, and could be to blame for the lack of ground balls.
"I feel the arm strength is there where every pitch doesn't have to be on the black," Halladay said. "It just has to be down so we can get more ground balls and be more efficient. That's something we need to work on and address — quickly."
First, Halladay requires conviction in his fastball. The way he pitched Wednesday resembled nothing like Halladay at his prime, or even during a forgettable 2012.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
Let's see. Doc is throwing fewer fastballs, slower fastballs and fewer strikes. Should we be concerned? Naaaah.— Claudio Vernight
Doc states that his "arm strength is continuing to grow". I don't see it. In fact, last year when he had an ailment that affected his velocity, at least it was (supposedly) caused by his back. This year, he states that he is completely healthy, but his velocity is worse, albeit only slightly, but worse just the same. All the great pitchers usually are in denial at the end of their career -- Doc is no different. The mind is willing but the body just can't do the job. He will have to completely reinvent himself, but without a fastball at this stage in his career, he becomes a batting practice pitcher, unless he learns how to be a junk ball pitcher. It might take awhile. I, for one, am in Doc's corner. I hope he can do it.- Someone should tell Doc that extended spring training is in Clearwater not Atlanta.— Dull
- Halladay's problems take some heat off Howard, who's 0-8 with 3Ks. Roy will figure something out. Howard -- probably not.— Xyzzyx
- So many Halladay articles, so little time.— Phillies2008WSChamps
- @Xyzz -- All winter, I wondered out loud (here on philly.com) about Howard's efforts to get better against LH pitching and breaking balls generally. The Q was: what was he doing in the offseason to make sure he improved? Was he focused on conditioning? Was he working with Barry Bonds or some other lefthanded hitting power hitter? A sports psychologist? Did he hire a team of coaches to work on it with him? Turns out he did nothing. He said his approach this year was going to be to "just relax." Easy for him, I guess ...— Copper34
- Agreed. Howard is the same old Howard. Wouldn't know the strike zone if it was 5 feet wide. Hopelessly undisciplined and in love with swinging at ball four, swinging and missing for strike three. It is absolutely nerve-racking watching his at bats and knowing inside that he'll end up striking out with runners on base. How this guy expects to rack up over 100 RBIs is beyond me. What kills me is that we've got a "hitting guru" (ahem) and two hitting coaches who, apparently, can't get through Howard's thick head. Howard refuses to adjust and is a stubborn, undisciplined strike out artist who "cashed out" once he stole the big payday and is content to sit back and collect the money. No heart, no pride, and no guts.
- Ditto...same old Howard. He looks good at Spring training when nothings on the line, but when the rubber meets the road, he's still flailing at the dirt. I do have to admit though, he's more selective and runs the count longer before fanning.
— dogman5 - What Matt fails to mention is that Halladay started off 2012 with a 3-0 record, had a 1.95 ERA through his first 5 starts, and was averaging about 7.5 innings pitched per game through those first 5 games. Velocity is just a small part of what's going on. I believe that he will build his arm back up and end up having a good year.— tfnj42
