Zito's new delivery met with anxiety
The Giants' pitching coach expresses concern that the ace's curveball will be lost.
By Nick Peters - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 12:14 am PST Friday, February 16, 2007
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C3
Giants left-hander Barry Zito, who turned a devastating breaking ball into the richest contract signed by a pitcher, threw his new club a curve his first day on the mound.
With pitching coach Dave Righetti watching intently at Scottsdale Stadium on Thursday morning, Zito's initial bullpen session was full of surprises. Unlike his introductory teleconference in December, when he mused about abandoning his vaunted curveball, this time he wasn't kidding.
Instead, he went to the mound armed with a tape measure to mark his stride and proceeded to demonstrate a new delivery to better utilize his legs, add power to his pitches and create a more fluid motion.
"I'm just trying to take my weight down the mound a little bit more, use my legs a little bit more," said Zito, 28, who signed a seven-year, $126 million contract.
"I wasn't using my legs the last couple of years. I'm just taking a step back to create momentum from the beginning of the delivery. Before I used to stop and then go and try to create momentum really from nothing."
Zito said he merely was reutilizing a delivery from earlier in his A's career, which included a 102-63 record, 222 consecutive starts and a Cy Young Award. It includes a wider stance, bent legs, a slight bounce and a step backward.
Whereas manager Bruce Bochy was diplomatic, Righetti didn't seem convinced tampering with success was such a good idea. He obviously was taken aback and didn't rule out talking the new staff ace out of the notion.
In phone conversations with Zito, Righetti was told the new Giant was tinkering with a new approach. Still, he wasn't prepared for the drastic adjustment he saw and candidly discussed it with reporters following the workout.
"It's going to wear him down. He's going to overstride -- it's going to be tough on him," Righetti said. "He's gone from one extreme to another from a pitching standpoint. His ball flight is going to be different, no doubt about it.
"To me, it'll be about making his pitches. If he loses the curveball -- which he could because he'll be throwing from a different angle now -- we'll see how sore his groin is tomorrow. But he's a good athlete and he got himself in shape for it."
Asked if he was worried, Righetti said: "Yeah. He called me during the winter and said he was going to do a little something different. He was right."
Bochy, saying there was "a good chance" Zito would be the Opening Day starter April 3, confirmed the surprise element of the pitcher's workout. Asked when he knew about the delivery change, the manager dryly said: "The first pitch he threw."
He also took a wait-and-see approach, adding: "I don't see this being an issue. Barry has been working on it this winter. He's got his reasons. We all do whatever we can to improve ourselves and get better.
"Tiger Woods keeps winning tournaments and he alters his swing."
On the same day Zito's debut created a stir,the Giants announced Barry Bonds' contract had been finalized. So was the pitcher's record deal; it became official without any commotion.
That was reserved for his mound work. As Righetti said, "It's very rare that you see this. He's been successful. He must have felt pretty strongly about it. ... He obviously put a lot of thought into it.
"All pitchers feel the same way. They're looking for more freedom and ways to relax on the mound. Guys who are creative kind of need to do something. They're always finicky. They're always looking for something. But most guys will only think about it."
Not, apparently, Barry Zito.
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