Mound visits time to talk strategy
PORT CHARLOTTE — In the first inning of his first big-league start, Rays pitcher Chris Archer received his first mound visit.
It came from first baseman Carlos Peña, a frequent flyer between his position and the mound.
The Nationals, playing at home, scored three runs that inning, though only one was earned.
At one point, sensing the kid was rattled, Peña called for time and jogged to the mound.
Archer remembers Peña saying something along the lines of, “Look, you’re in the big leagues, too. Doesn’t matter what name is on the back of the jersey. You’re here. You’re a big-leaguer just like them. You’re an equal.”
Archer agreed. He settled down and pitched six innings, holding the Nats scoreless over the final five.
Brief get-togethers like that are now in jeopardy because Major League Baseball capped mound meetings this season at six per game per team.
Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph is not a fan.
“It’s not just wasting time or giving the catcher some TV time,” he said. “The idea is for the pitcher to go nine innings and nobody goes out there.”
But they do meet at the mound, and meet often enough for MLB to identify it as a problem when it comes to pace of play. Again, Joseph scoffs. “It takes all of 10 seconds,” he said. “You run out there, say what you have to say and run back.”
Just what is said during those brief meetings when the pitchers and catchers cover their mouths with their gloves and mitts?
It might be disappointing to learn it is not like the most famous mound meeting of all, the one in “Bull Durham,” when Crash Davis leads the discussion on what to buy Millie and Jimmy for their wedding and where to find a live rooster to lift the curse off Jose’s first baseman’s mitt.
“Rarely do you actually have the ‘Bull Durham’ scene,” Joseph said. “Most of that stuff kind of happens in the minor leagues when everybody is still learning.”
In the majors they discuss more mundane matters, such as the catcher detecting a flaw in the pitcher’s delivery or they want to change signs because there is a runner on second base or they want to quickly review how they will pitch to the batter.
“As a catcher you put down a signal and the pitcher shakes [it off ],” said Rays manager Kevin Cash, a former catcher. “Sometimes, as the catcher, you think this is the pitch he should throw. I’m going to go out there and talk about it and try to convince him. If not, I’m going to walk back there and let him throw what he wants.”
“Sometimes,” Joseph said, “you’ll go out there and say, ‘Hey, we’re going to throw a slider in the dirt and if he doesn’t swing, we’re going to go fastball inside.’ You’re making sure they know the plan in really tight situations, like late in the game when one swing can beat you.”
Rays pitcher Jake Faria said former pitching coach Jim Hickey was short and direct during his visits.
“He’d say, ‘What are you thinking here? Let’s all be on the same page.’ His visits were never long,” Faria said. “It was really quick, ‘Hey, what are you doing?’ Boom. Gone.”
A pitcher who is struggling will often get a visit from a catcher or veteran infielder.
“Sometimes a guy just needs a breather,” Rays pitcher and Lake Brantley High alum Jonny Venters said.