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Pitchers who rely on blowing hitters away with 95+ fastballs do not last, at some point they have to learn to pitch to contact or be more elusive
Thats what made Greg Maddux so great he didn't win with power he won with location. His fastball was like 89 mph but he knew how to locate it. Oh and that 2 seamer to left handed batters was deadly.
Greg Maddux will probably always be my favorite player but it's hard not to credit a significant amount of his success to the strike zone he was given. He could have tossed the ball into the dugout and get the call.
Pitchers who rely on blowing hitters away with 95+ fastballs do not last, at some point they have to learn to pitch to contact or be more elusive
That's what I really like about Gallardo for the Brewers right now. He's essentially given up trying to be a strikeout pitcher and now pitches to contact. So far I'd say it's paying off...
2-0 1.42 ERA 1.07 WHIP 9 BB 23 SO in 31.2 IP
He used to average a strikeout an inning. He's well below that so far and it's paying dividends to his ERA.
It'll be interesting to see if he can continue his adjustment. He had a rough year last year but much like Sabathia he's in that transition from having high heat to trying to be a bit more elusive and being an actual pitcher instead of a thrower.
Gallardo wasn't striking guys out last year either. His groundball rate is climbing though.