Series Thread 04/27/07 - 04/29/07 Red Sox @ Yankees
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wetsthebed
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Bleeding Green
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Apparently he developed a new pitch in spring training.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?id=2850160
But his key pitch may well have been discovered by accident. In the first week of the season, during a side session in Kansas City, pitching coach John Farrell marveled at the action on a pitch Okajima was toying with. Holding the ball with a split-finger grip, Okajima was throwing a changeup-screwball hybrid with incredible movement.
Ever since, it's been a big part of his repertoire.
"He seems to change speeds off his changeup -- or whatever that thing is," said one American League scout. "He spins it with ... a reverse Frisbee action. It's a plus pitch for him now, a great equalizer. But really, I think the key for him is the ability to throw strikes. That's pretty basic, but in that division, it's huge. If you're facing Toronto and New York and you're 2-and-1, 3-and-1 ... you get in those hitter's counts, you get killed. But he doesn't. It seems like he's always pitching ahead."
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?id=2850160
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