A's pitcher Brett Anderson will glance at the ballpark radar gun after throwing off-speed pitches, using the readings to give him some sense of whether he's employing his secondary stuff at the right speed. But he doesn't bother checking after fastballs; there's no need.
He can feel it when his fastball is good -- when, after it comes out of his hand, it pops the mitt of Oakland catcher
Kurt Suzuki. Anderson can tell how hard he's throwing based on opposing hitters' swings. He probably has been throwing harder lately than at any other time in his life.
In Anderson's past two starts, against Detroit and Boston, his fastball has been clocked at 94-97 mph, a far cry from the 91-93 mph that scouts noted when Anderson came out of high school. At the time, it was believed that he would be a solid lefty whose primary weapon would be his ability to command pitches. But now, at age 21, Anderson has some serious zip, and midway through his rookie season, it serves him well. In his past two starts, Anderson (5-7) has allowed just six hits in 14.1 innings. And five days ago, he shut out Boston while walking two and striking out nine.
"I feel strong," said Anderson, who recently was given a couple of extra days of rest between starts. "It was kind of like this year. I started out in the minors throwing 92-93 mph, in the first quarter of the season, and then as the season progressed, I got up to 94-95 mph.
"I'm in the best pitching shape I've been in. I'm never going to have a six-pack or be able to run 10 miles, but I'm in the best pitching shape I've been in."
The Athletics rehired former strength and conditioning coach
Bobby Alejo before this season, and he changed the pitchers' running program so that they took longer runs faster than before. On the first day of spring training, the Oakland pitchers started on the left-field foul line on a practice field at the team's training camp, then sprinted toward center field at distances that appeared to reach 100 yards. By the end of that day, Anderson was one of the Oakland pitchers bent over, breathing hard.
He also has been able to maintain a consistent weightlifting regimen, a difficult thing to achieve while playing in the minor leagues. Some minor league ballparks have weight rooms while others don't, and visiting players often are left to find a YMCA to access a viable set of weights. And then they might have to wait in line.
The payoff for this summer's work is showing in Anderson's results, specifically his velocity. In the middle of his start against the Red Sox, he reached a two-strike count against
Jason Bay. Anderson says that in such a situation, he usually would throw something off-speed in an effort to get Bay to chase a pitch. Maybe a slider aimed at the slugger's back foot.
But with the left-hander's fastball humming, Suzuki called for the heat. Anderson obliged, pumping the ball through Bay's swing for a third strike. It was another step forward for a young pitcher learning how to win in the big leagues.
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Buster Olney
