SCOTTSDALE — Aaron Sanchez’s start was up and down. But he’s pretty bullish on where his stock is headed.
The Giants’ likely fifth starter’s second outing of the spring included his being lifted from an inning in which he struggled and a fastball that sat about 92-93 mph on the Scottsdale Stadium gun, which is a step up from last week but step down from his heyday.
He had some command issues, including a hit batter and two walks in 3 1/3 innings, in which he climbed toward a 60-pitch target. But he also had a curveball that he gained a feel for as the game went on, relying upon it increasingly. Facing superstar Christian Yelich in the third, Sanchez threw five breaking balls in a row, getting three swings and misses for easily the most impressive of his three strikeouts.
Giants coaches have asked the righty to up the usage on that curve, which he threw a career-high 23.1 percent of the time in 2019 — the last time he threw a major league pitch. Shoulder surgery wiped out part of that season and his 2020, and the Giants took a $4 million flier on upside that made him a 2016 All-Star.
He may be a different pitcher now — but not automatically in a bad way.
“Before, I really didn’t use [the curveball],” the 30-year-old said after allowing two runs on four hits while recording 10 outs. “… That’s one of my better offerings, so [the coaches’] analogy to me was that’s like a stock-market pitch, where that’s one of your better stocks — the more money you put into it, the more times you use it, the better off you’re going to be.”
The curveball induced plenty of whiffs from Brewers batters, including a swing and miss from Orlando Arcia to send the shortstop back to the dugout.
Sanchez’s fastball is not what it was in 2016, and his changeup will naturally be hurt if his fastball is diminished. His velocity ticked up a bit as he tried to go harder than his spring debut, and Kapler was encouraged that he mostly maintained the velocity.
But he was more encouraged with his curveball.
“I was really pleased that he stayed with it,” the manager said after the 2-2 tie with the Brewers at Scottsdale Stadium. “He certainly had some misses with it, but he never went away from it. He trusted that the more he used it, the more likely he was going to throw it for strikes.”
There needs to be furthered tinkering, and Sanchez said he struggled with his release point. But the nastiness of the curve gives a peek at the potential.
Sanchez figures to be the fifth starter in the rotation, in part because of Alex Wood’s back issue. But there’s a decent chance they ask the two to share a start April 6 in San Diego.
Before then, Sanchez likely will get a 75-pitch sim game. He’s on his way to the rotation and believes he’s only on the upswing, his stock rising.
“Definitely a step in the right direction,” Sanchez said.