Tuesday Pitching Thoughts

I remember watching Sunday Night Baseball, way back in High School (2007 or 2008), and something Curt Schilling (who then did the colour commentary) said, and it has stuck with me ever since.

He talked about the first step in a young pitcher's development at the next level is the ability to pitch backwards. You need to be able to command your off-speed in hitter's counts.

Ok, you can pitch backwards. What's the next stage in your development? He stated: You need to be able to throw a fastball, in a fastball count, when the hitter is hunting the fastball, and still be able to get him out.

I'm a pitching nerd. I love all the advanced tech we have now, and pitch design, etc. I can spend countless hours on Baseball Savant. With that said, the more things change, the more they stay the same. The ability to command your fastball in all four quadrants when you want to is as important to Paul Skenes as it was to Nolan Ryan as it was to Bob Feller.

Sticking with Curt Schilling here I'm going to do a 180 for my second point in this post. I want to talk about something he tweeted yesterday in regards to the unfortunate injury to Tarik Skubal. "Second? Max effort pitching, the hunt for velocity, is destroying the pitcher."

https://t.co/JI6g0evEsg So many comments. First off? WBC? NEVER would I allow a pitcher in my organization to do it, ZERO upside. (But as a player I would have KILLED to do it). Second? Max effort pitching, the hunt for velocity, is destroying the pitcher. Third? I had loose…

— Curt Schilling (@gehrig38) May 4, 2026

Let's dissect this.

First off, give me a break. As long as pitcher's have existed they chased velocity and stuff. Bob Feller did. Bob Gibson did. Nolan Ryan certainly did.

Justin Verlander, one of the best to ever do it, gave a really long and introspective answer on why pitchers have to chase throwing every pitch as hard as they can. Early in his career he could afford to throw slower early in games. He was notorious for his velocity steadily climbing and finishing games at 100. With every hitter a real risk to leave the ballpark, pitcher's strategies had to change. Check it out below:

Cole Newell on Instagram: “LOVE THIS from @justinverlander 🗣️ I think there’s a lot to take from this especially from someone who is one of the greatest pitchers of all time. It’s a great answer and something I’ve pushed over and over on the pitching aspect of the game. Throwing with higher velocity is great, but it isn’t everything. The amount of variables involved in injuries is mind blowing. You can’t just finger point to one thing or the most recent rule change. It’s the accumulation of a lot of things. #baseball #pitching #mlb”

cnpitching on October 18, 2025: “LOVE THIS from @justinverlander 🗣️ I think there’s a lot to take from this especially from someone who is one of the greatest pitchers of all time. It’s a great answer and something I’ve pushed over and over on the pitching aspect of the game. Throwing with higher…

Instagram

Anyway, I love pitching - and if you do too, I plan on making this a regular Tuesday segment!