It’s about more than just the K for 6-foot-10 San Diego Padres hurler (and Princeton alum) Chris Young. Here are his rules for outdueling the opposition.*
Interviewed by Sean Cunningham
1. Save Your Strikeouts
“Runner on third, less than two outs. That’s it. Or if a pitcher’s up and you’ve got a runner in scoring position, then you want to get a strikeout to keep him from advancing him. Those are really the only times it will enter your mind. But a strikeout’s not a result of anything other than having your game plan and making good pitches. It’s not something you’re sitting there thinking, ‘I’m gonna strike this guy out.’”
2. Do Your Prep Work
“It starts the day after I pitch. I start thinking about the next game, going over hitters in my head, starting to watch video, watching the box scores, seeing who the hot hitters are. The subsequent three days I’ll continue to do the same thing: watch video, go through the lineup, watch their hitters against pitchers who are similar in style to me. The day before I pitch I get the scouting book, which we have on every team, and go through and look at the numbers.”
3. Be First To Adjust
“The basic things you look for are their swing path, their stance, what they’re trying to do: whether they’re a pull hitter or trying to hit the ball to the opposite field. I analyze whether they’re a lowball hitter or a highball hitter or a sort of middle of the plate hitter. Some guys are better on inside pitches than outside pitches and vice versa. They’re all things you have video access to, and you have the big scouting book you analyze. After the first at-bat, you get an idea of what the hitter is trying to do off of you. You go through and you formulate your game plan: This guy’s normally a pull hitter, but when the pitcher gets ahead in the count he shortens his swing and tries to go to right field. Everybody makes adjustments — it’s a matter of knowing enough to pick up those adjustments to stay a step ahead of the hitter.”
4. Stick To Your Strengths
“I’m a pretty good high fastball pitcher. I pitch up in the zone a lot. Good lowball hitters and bad highball hitters are guys I tend to match up with decently. Occasionally they’ll still get me. There are guys who are bad highball hitters who get on top of my fastball. Some of it’s just luck. It just comes down to pitching to your strengths and executing those pitches. If a guy’s chart shows he’s not a great highball hitter, I think I can attack him up in the zone.”
5. Know Your Foe
“A guy like Pujols or Matt Holliday, they don’t carry bad at bats with them. At some point in the game, they’re going to give you good at-bats. Chances are, if you make a bad pitch they’re gonna beat you on it, whether they’re hot or cold. You don’t do that against a hitter like that. There are hitters who come in red hot — say, they’re 7 for their last 14, just locked in and seeing the ball well that series for whatever reason — and you have to adjust accordingly. Likewise, there are guys you think are pretty good hitters but right now they’re in a funk, they’re getting themselves out. Ultimately, you don’t steer too far away from your game plan, because your game plan is based on your strengths to begin with. I’m not gonna go and say, ‘This guy’s looking terrible on knuckleballs right now, so I’m gonna start throwing knuckleballs to him.’ It’s just not realistic. I’m gonna stick with my bread and butter.”
6. Sniff Out the Hurt
“You look at any time the guy missed and take that into account. You realize, ‘Hey, he hasn’t seen a live fastball in two and a half weeks.’ But if he’s in the major leagues, he’s a dangerous hitter, so you’re not gonna underestimate him completely. For the guys that can run, if they’ve had leg injuries or ankle injuries or what not, you know if they get on base, Hey, their hamstring’s bothering them; chances are they’re not going to steal. You don’t have to worry about them as much. Or the guy might not try to bunt for a hit because he’s got a bad leg.”
7. Stay In the Game
“While I’m out there pitching, I’ve got all these thoughts going through my head: analyzing what the game situation is, what the score is, where the runners are, how many outs there are, who’s up, what that hitter did his previous at bats, what his history is off me, what my game plan is against him tonight, if a certain pitch isn’t working that night adjusting my game plan accordingly…. It can be mentally exhausting.”
8. Be in Control
“I don’t let the catcher call my game. I call my own. If I’m having trouble getting on the same page as a catcher, it’s my own fault. I think for every pitcher, it should be on them to call their own game. You know yourself as well as anyone. Even if you have a veteran catcher, it’s important for any pitcher to know what they do best and stick with it.”
9. Don’t Fear the Runner
“The guy on first isn’t going to dictate my pitch selection — I’m not going to be afraid to throw off-speed pitches just because there’s a guy on first. No matter who the hitter is, you have to mix in off-speed because the hitters are so good that if you throw just fastballs they’re going to get one of them. Ultimately, only 17 percent of stolen bases lead to a run that would have not otherwise scored. You’re better off concentrating on the hitter and getting the out. Of course, this is coming from a guy who led the league in stolen bases allowed for a couple of seasons in a row but I’ve also led the league in opponent’s batting average. Percentage-wise, I’m gonna take my chances with the hitter versus the runner on first.”
10. Throw the First Pitch for a Strike
“Obviously one of the big stats is that if you’re ahead in the count the hitter’s average decreases dramatically versus when you’re behind in the count, by 20 to 50 points. That shows me the importance of throwing strikes.”
11. Understand the Moment
“One of the stats I look at is how hitters hit with runners in scoring position. Some guys will change their approach completely. Some guys will get less aggressive. Some guys will get more aggressive. Analyze what they do without a runner in scoring position, then with a runner in scoring position. It gives me a better idea of whether I can expand the strike zone or not, or whether I need to be a little bit more fine with this guy.”
12. Remember: It’s a Long Season
“Out of 33 starts or whatever you have, you’re going to have maybe five games where you feel just unbelievable and everything’s in sync and working. Those nights you’re tough to beat. You’re going to have three, four, five nights when nothing’s going your way, you’re just off, you’re going to get hit around. What makes a season is those 20 starts in between, where you don’t have your best stuff but you’re not terrible. You’ve got to find a way to get it done. That’s what separates a good from a great starting pitcher.”
Chris Young’s In-Game Simulator
Showing just how situational a pitcher’s brain is, Young responds to one specific question with a slew of his own.
Men’s Journal: How would you pitch a tie game, third inning, one out, with a man on first?
Chris Young: Tie game 0-0 or tie game 4-4? There’s a difference.
MJ: How about tie game 1-1? One out, low-ball hitter at the plate.
CY: Righty or lefty?
MJ: Righty.
CY: Is the guy on first fast?
MJ: Sure. He’s not exactly Rickey Henderson, but let’s say he stole 25 bases last year.
CY: What did the hitter do in his first at-bat?
MJ: Fly ball.
CY: Fly ball out?
MJ: Yes.
CY: What spot in the order is he hitting?
MJ: Sixth.
CY: So, 1-1 in the third, six hitter up, runner on first base, one out…. I’m not overly concerned about the runner on first, because if I get the next two hitters out, that runner, even if he steals second, he’s not gonna score. I’ll be aggressive with the hitter, come right after him, try to get him out early in the count without having to throw too many pitches. If I get ahead in the count, I will try to make him chase, to get himself out on a bad pitch. And if the runner on first steals second base, it actually gives me even more room for error with the hitter, knowing that I have seven, eight, and then the pitcher in the ninth spot coming up, so really I have three hitters to get two outs with one empty base without giving up a run. If it looks like it’s going to be a pretty low-scoring game then that run, particularly in a National League game, could be the difference. Certainly in a game where I’m only going six or seven innings, chances are I’m gonna be aggressive with the hitter. But as soon as that runner tries to take second base it’s gonna change the game plan a little bit. If he’s out, then it’s two outs and the six hitter up and I want to go right after him so I have the seven, eight, nine coming up the next inning, and the following inning I have the heavy hitters. Ultimately I’m going to try to be aggressive with him, but I’m not going to give in to the point where I let that guy beat me — not with the seven, eight, nine hitters coming up. Now, the four hitter, I’m not going to take too many chances with him. I’ll take my chances with the five. The six, I can be pretty aggressive. If I fall behind, I’ve got the seven, eight, nine after.”
*(…when he’s no longer on the DL.)
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