PEORIA, Ariz. – Standing in front of home plate with his catcher’s gear on, Cal Raleigh was barely able to get his mitt down in time; the ball thrown by Andrés Muñoz during warmups dropped so quickly, so unexpectedly that it nearly hit the Mariners star catcher in the shin.
“What the?” Raleigh mumbled under his mask.
A few minutes later, everyone watching in the bullpen had virtually the exact same reaction watching Muñoz unveil his newest pitch – some ungodly creation called a “kick changeup.”
It’s a pitch Muñoz, the Mariners’ All-Star closer, saw recently on Instagram. He was intrigued by it, so he started throwing it casually a couple days ago on flat-ground catch play.
To throw the pitch, he holds it with a traditional circle changeup grip – with his right index finger and thumb forming a circle – but adds a “kick” by lifting his middle finger up and off the ball.
With the blessing of Mariners pitching coaches, Muñoz unleashed it for the first time at maximum effort during his bullpen session with Raleigh on Saturday morning.
He was only allowed to throw it one time … but that one pitch was all he needed to create a stir around Mariners camp.
Devin Williams, the former Milwaukee Brewers closer who’s now with the Yankees, has probably the most popular changeup in baseball right now. Williams’ changeup averaged 84.4 mph with a vertical break of negative-3.5 inches last season.
Muñoz’s first changeup was clocked at 91 mph and measured a 10-inch negative vertical drop.
“Best pitch I’ve ever seen,” Mariners pitching coach Pete Woodworth said.
Hyperbole? Maybe. But Woodworth made that comment with some real zeal, and he’s seen thousands of elite pitches while coaching one of MLB’s best pitching staffs the past five years.
Mariners reliever Matt Brash, standing behind Muñoz during his bullpen session, echoed Woodworth’s sentiment, and Raleigh was obviously impressed too.
Muñoz was the one throwing some caution.
Yes, he said he was happy with the debut of his new pitch … but it was only one pitch.
“I don’t know how it’s going to be tomorrow; I don’t know how [it’s] going to be the next day,” Muñoz said. “Maybe it’s something that I just threw today and was good for one day.”
He is going to keep throwing it, obviously, here in spring training, and Mariners coaches are at least intrigued by the idea of Muñoz adding a fourth pitch to his repertoire.
Although, as Raleigh put it, “It’s not like he needs a new pitch.”
The 26-year-old Muñoz has been one of the best relievers in the majors the past few years. He earned his first All-Star nod last year, finishing the season with a 2.12 ERA and a career-high 22 saves.
His slider last season was largely unhittable, registering a 48.5% whiff rate from batters. He has also touched 103 mph with his four-seam fastball, and he learned a two-seam fastball two years ago that’s been effective too; he’s allowed only one extra-base hit, a double, with his two-seamer over the past two seasons.
The changeup, he hopes, has the potential to be another wipeout pitch for him.
“It’s just like something else that I would like to have in case that I need it,” he said. “That is why I’m working every day to get better and better every time. Sometimes it doesn’t go your way. But I know that when you put good effort in, work hard and get better, the results will come.”
A happy mentor
Immediately after his bullpen session Saturday, Muñoz spent time on Field 1 talking one-on-one with Mariners veteran starter Luis Castillo.
Castillo just so happens to have the best changeup on Seattle’s staff. Beyond Castillo’s advice on any one pitch, though, he has become a close mentor to Muñoz over the past couple years.
“Just the presence that he has, he’s on another level,” Muñoz said. “He sets an example for everybody – just the way he talks to us. He’s really relaxed and really happy all the time. It gives you a good energy to the (whole) team. He is really special for us and having him here is the best thing.”
Muñoz was relieved that Castillo was not traded this offseason.
“He’s a really good friend of mine. Obviously, I understand that this is a business, but I was happy when I saw that he was here for the camp,” Muñoz said. “I just want to be with him all the time because I am learning every day with him.”
Feeling better
Muñoz pitched through a nagging back ailment for the first half of last season – and pitched with a back brace for much of the year – but said he’s feeling much better now.
This offseason, he focused on strengthening his core muscles, and the back is no longer an issue.
“I feel great right now,” he said.