Edwin Jackson was perplexed by the attention. So I am.
Jackson went into his last outing with a game plan: only throw fastballs. And that is what he did for his 5 innings of work. He threw 74 pitches over five innings against Cubs’ minor
leaguers on last Wednesday morning.
“I got tired being asked about it,” Jackson said Wednesday
afternoon according to ESPN. “[Eric] Gagne would go through a whole spring training
throwing change-ups. He would throw like two fastballs.”
Jackson says he told pitching coach Chris Bosio about his plan to work on his fastball.
Cubs manager Rick Renteria said “He threw three [different] pitches today,” Renteria said. “He was
doing what he wanted to do: work on his fastball command. He had a
purpose and reason for doing what he was doing.”
Jackson confirmed he threw a four seam, two seam, cutters and off-speed pitches in his start against
Cubs minor leaguers on Wednesday. With an off day on Thursday, the Cubs
wanted Jackson to stay on schedule.
“It was just for one game,” Jackson said of his fastball-filled outing.
Spring training is meant to experiment and re-train players, whether pitchers or catchers, to prepare for the regular season. Jackson wanting to work on command and control of his fastball, his primary pitch, makes perfect sense in spring training.
Since there is such little news from Cubs camp, the media took issue with a pitcher trying to work on his game, abet in an unusual fashion.
It is actually quite important for a pitcher to be able to throw multiple pitches with command from the same mechanics and arm slot. There is a good deal of difference in movement between a four seam and two seam fastball. A pitcher who is comfortable throwing either pitch can develop an advantage over a hitter. In addition, if one pitch is not working well in a game, the pitcher can try another type of fastball to regain his control.
Jackson should not be criticized for his work routine.
