D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Shaun Anderson’s blister on his pitching hand cost him three weeks of time last season and may have indirectly cost him a solid start this spring.
Following the injured-list stint, Anderson shifted the grip on his fastball and kept throwing the adjusted four-seamer in the first weeks in Arizona. The velocity has been there and the slider is missing bats, but his fastball was getting, well, blistered. Through three appearances, an intriguing righty who had an outside shot at a rotation spot and a better chance at a bullpen job had allowed nine runs in 2 2/3 innings.
“I was trusting it in the zone my last couple outings and they were getting to it,” Anderson said of his fastball. “I sat down and was like, ‘Why is that?’ I think it’s located pretty well.”
He wasn’t alone on his chair. He mentioned working with pitching coach Andrew Bailey, and they took a look at the spin on Edgertronic cameras that break down precisely how the ball is moving. His fastball, still in the low-to-mid-90s, was rotating more sideways than tumbling — Anderson called it “wobbly.” It was easier for hitters to pick up.
“Flipping on this grip, it stays more true and it’s harder to see the spin,” said Anderson, who unveiled his new (and old) fastball Sunday, allowing one hit (a home run) and striking out two in two innings against Seattle. “… It’s [now] just seams replacing seams. It’s harder to pick up. In that case I can throw it in the zone and it either gets fouled off or try to stay away from the barrel so I can get to my slider.”
And there’s the goal — to use the fastball to get to his put-away slider. Anderson, in the 90th percentile of spin rate with his fastball, wants to throw it in the zone, where it can deceive and miss barrels so he can get ahead and finish guys off with his best pitch.
The Giants have long been split about whether Anderson profiles as a starter or reliever, the college closer impressing more last season out of the pen. They’re still noncommittal, seeing how he develops as he stretches out in camp. They still want to see more of him and like the recent returns after the early concerns.
“It continues to be about execution and getting ahead and then staying ahead,” manager Gabe Kapler said Sunday from Scottsdale Stadium. “When he’s ahead of the count and then he executes his slider, he tends to have better results. That’s what he’s working on.”
Anderson was briefly scheduled to get a start this weekend, though he said that information had not gotten back to him — Trevor Cahill got the ball instead. The Giants had Anderson throw bullpen sessions and work on the grip that is now adjusted. The big righty is back in the mix.
“If they want me to go out there and throw five innings in relief, I’ll throw five innings in relief,” said Anderson, who still has options and has a difficult path toward finding an Opening Day roster spot. “I think that’s the same as starters. Starters aren’t going as long, sometimes they do, sometimes bullpen arms go long. I want to be versatile.”