San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
NOT HIS BEST STUFF
Musgrove reflects on his no-hitter being a product of staying in the moment
Joe Musgrove laid in his bed Thursday night at the Padres’ hotel and envisioned the crowd and heard in his mind the noise that would be made the next night at Globe Life Field. He anticipated how he might feel in the fourth inning and fifth inning and so on, what his focus would be in this situation and that, how he might need to take a deep breath or maybe lock in a little more.
“Running through every scenario,” he said, “so when those things happen in a game, I feel like it’s not the first time I’m experiencing it.”
And then, even when something no one in a Padres uniform had experienced happens, it’s no big deal as it is unfolding.
It’s just a matter of fact that the first no-hitter in a franchise’s history came to pass because Musgrove wasn’t expecting it or thinking about it.
No hits isn’t even really the biggest thing. It was merely the result of a process.
“That’s exactly it,” Musgrove said Saturday.
While he recognized what was working for him Friday and that he was facing an aggressive team that would swing at a lot of his offerings, he retired 27 of the 28 batters he faced while hitting one on the leg in the middle, because he made “the challenge about me against myself.”
Musgrove had in his six-year career been better physically than he
“It’s a great accomplishment, but it’s early in the season. This isn’t going to mean a whole lot if I can’t continue to perform and do my thing.”
Joe Musgrove • On his no-hitter
was against the Rangers.
His back was tight early Friday evening. His delivery didn’t feel right. His cutter leaked a bit. He couldn’t make the curveball go to the side of the plate he wanted early.
But he had never been so mentally dominant.
“I don’t think my stuff was elite last night,” he said. “I’ve had plenty of games I’ve had better stuff. But the way we used my stuff and the way we game planned and the preparation going into that start is ultimately what allowed us to go that deep.”
Musgrove abandoned his four-seam fastball after the fifth inning, threw his final sinker in the sixth inning and his last change-up in the seventh.
The curve came back. He got his final three outs on the pitch and threw it 12 times in the final three innings. He threw his slider 15 times in the final three innings, including six times to left-handed batters after showing them just six sliders in the first six innings.
“The biggest thing I take away from this is it just gives you that confidence that you are capable to get deep in the game and you are capable of having quality stuff late in the game,” Musgrove said. “Every time you do something new for the first time, you prove to yourself you’re capable of more than you thought you were.”
More than anything, what made Friday special was the way he approached each moment in the game.
This wasn’t the guy who often would think in the middle of games how good he was doing and let that thought cloud what he would do next and before he knew it a shutout in the fifth was no longer a quality start. This was not the guy who the three previous times he made it past the seventh inning had twice allowed multiple runs in the eighth and once allowed two runs before he could get an out in the ninth.
What was he thinking Friday night as the fifth turned into the sixth and then the seventh?
“Not trying to look too far in advance, trying to focus on one pitch at a time, not letting the leverage of the situation and intensity of the game enter my mind,” Musgrove said.
Musgrove was a firstround pick in 2011. His pitches have always moved, if not as drastically as they are now. The breakout that has occurred over his past six starts, in which he has a 0.97 ERA and 0.62 WHIP and hasn’t allowed a run in 31 innings, was anticipated by the Houston Astros and Pittsburgh Pirates well before the Padres brought the El Cajon native home in January.
He has made his pitches better in the past year or so. He has made greater gains in his understanding of the game and of himself.
“That’s been my biggest improvement,” he said. “I feel like I’m at the point with my delivery, I’ve made the adjustments I need to. I’m consistent. The pitches are right where I need them. The consistency is not 100 percent, but I don’t know if it ever will be. The movement is the best it’s ever been. I’ve got my pitches to where I can do the things I’ve always wanted to do with them, and I can pair them the way I’ve always wanted to.
“Now it just comes down to pure focus and how much can I execute. When you eliminate the idea of having to go 100 pitches or sevenplus innings and focus on going one pitch at a time until they take the ball from you, I find myself in the sixth or seventh inning before I know it.”
Musgrove said he was good physically after throwing a career-high 112 pitches but that he was still running on adrenaline and might experience a delay in feeling the usual post-start soreness. His next scheduled start is Wednesday in Pittsburgh, where he pitched the past two seasons. That start could be pushed a day. His mother and one of his sisters will be at PNC Park.
It’s time to move on. The process continues.
“That’s the biggest thing for me,” Musgrove said. “It’s a great accomplishment, but it’s early in the season. This isn’t going to mean a whole lot if I can’t continue to perform and do my thing. … It’s a great feeling for me. It’s a good thing for me to build on. It’s exciting, and I’ve enjoyed it. I’m going to enjoy it for today, but I think after today I’m going to have to move on and get ready for my next start and get back to work.”