⏩ Bounce back:
Pitcher Anthony DeSclafani says Giants, good weather give him an opportunity to return to 2019 form.
Anthony DeSclafani already was looking forward to joining the Giants, seeing San Francisco as a place that he can maximize his potential. The weather at his home in New Jersey made arriving in Scottsdale, Ariz., for spring training all the better.
“The past weeks have been crazy back there,” DeSclafani said on a video call Thursday. “I think even today we’re getting about 8 to 10 inches of snow, but these past two weeks we must have accumulated probably close to 3540 inches of snow. When I came here last Sunday, I was driving to the Philly airport in pretty much a blizzard.”
Now the new Giants starter is basking in the sunshine in Arizona and in the attention of a group of pitching experts he sought out specifically: coaches Andrew Bailey, Brian Bannister and J.P. Martinez, among others.
“It’s no secret that some guys have come here and revitalized their careers, kind of got back on track,” DeSclafani said. “It seems like San Fran has put together a really solid group of a group of minds ... just collectively always talking and trying to get each individual pitcher better. So that was attractive. Last year was not the best year for me so I just wanted to get to a spot where I was surrounded by a lot of solid minds, a lot of eyes, and just get the opportunity to pitch.”
DeSclafani, who signed a oneyear, $6 million deal in December, need look no further than former Reds teammate Kevin Gausman for inspiration. Gausman, who will be one of the team’s top starters with DeSclafani slotting in probably third, took major strides last year after signing with the Giants. In 2019, he had a 5.72 ERA combined between the Braves and Reds, but he lowered that to 3.62 last season, best among San Francisco’s regular starters.
Gausman pointed to the pitcherfriendly ballparks in the NL West as one reason, but also the positive atmosphere in San Francisco, a place he reiterated he’d like to stay longterm. “It was just about feeling comfortable, be able to be my own guy,” he said. “They didn’t try to make me into something that I’m not, that had a lot to do with it.”
DeSclafani and two other freeagent starters, Alex Wood and Aaron Sanchez — who The Chronicle reported Tuesday has agreed to a oneyear, $4 million deal with the Giants — are all candidates for rebound years. Kapler said that DeSclafani, who had a 3.89 ERA in 2019 but zoomed over 7.00 last year, “fits that mold well in particular. Our job as coaches who can help him get back to that 2019 form or even better is to remind him of who he was then . ... I think he’s a great candidate for a bounceback season.”
Conversations so far have run the gamut: mechanics, pitch mix, pitch shape. The biggest key, DeSclafani said, is his slider. He needs to make sure the grip, the velocity and depth are all right, and more than anything, he needs to just let it rip. “Cut it loose, try and spin it late and get that hard sharp action,” he said.
One plus for DeSclafani, Gausman and Wood is the presence of another former Reds player, catcher Curt Casali, plus the return of veteran Buster Posey, who opted out of the pandemicshortened season. DeSclafani also has worked with catcher Chadwick Tromp. The familiarity with Casili and Tromp “just makes the transition easier,” he said. “And I’m super excited to work with Buster, he’s had a ton of success and is great behind the dish.”
Just turning the page on 2020 is a major improvement, as far as DeSclafani is concerned. He had a down season, plus his first child, a son named Cru, was born in the midst of the pandemic. DeSclafani was able to be with his wife, Lauren, for the birth, but it was a stressful time and didn’t make competing at the highest level any easier.
“I think 2020 was a wash,” DeSclafani said, “But Cru was the best thing that happened out of last year.”