How Kevin Gausman built a career on one of baseball’s best pitches
T he endorsements continued for Gausman when he arrived in the majors after being drafted fourth overall by the Orioles in 2012. He debuted in the big leagues the following season and by 2014, was a key contributor in the rotation. The right-hander recalls striking out Texas Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton on a flithy splitter in the early days of his career: “At that point, that was probably the best split that I had thrown in the big leagues. That was the most I’ve seen that pitch move up to that point. He swung and missed and it was in the [other] batter’s box.”
Gausman watched video of the pitch the next day and tried to discern what he’d done differently. He couldn’t figure it out, though. His split could be monstrous, but it could also be terribly inconsistent. Orioles catchers knew that and weren’t inclined to call for it, especially in big situations. Gausman admits he had a hard time shaking off Matt Wieters, Baltimore’s all-star backstop, and that led to relying more on other pitches, which produced mixed results and, later, regret. “So many times I’d be lying in bed with my wife and be like, ‘I knew I shouldn’t have thrown that pitch. Why did I throw that pitch?’” he says. “I was constantly the guy that was up at night rethinking every pitch that I threw. Having success, but also just kind of grinding.”
The right-hander posted an ERA-plus of 101 across his first five years in the majors, a number that places him almost exactly at the league average. He was a serviceable starter, for sure, but wasn’t exactly fulfilling his potential as a top-five pick. The Orioles traded him to Atlanta in the middle of the 2018 season and the change exposed him to a different way of thinking. Atlanta got him to pitch primarily out of the stretch and alerted him to the fact that fastballs down in the zone were accounting for much of his struggles. Gausman needed to elevate that pitch and pair it with splitters down, they suggested. He tried that North-South formula and found instant success, putting together an impressive string of outings. He noticed that hitters were whiffing on fastballs up in the zone; pitches he never thought they would even bite on.