Jack Curry on Santana’s Changeup

Jack Curry has an article in today’s New York Times discussing Johan Santana‘s changeup and how much it looks like a fastball. Here are some quotes:

Rick Peterson: “When you talk to hitters and hitting coaches, the No. 1 factor for being a productive hitter in the major leagues is pitch recognition. If your fastball is at 92 to 95 miles per hour and it has the same spin as your changeup, which is at 80, there’s no recognition. We’ve hid that. We’ve disguised that.”

Jason Giambi: “The thing that makes his changeup so tough is how he controls it. He doesn’t bounce it. It just comes to the plate like a fastball and falls off.”

Derek Jeter: “A lot of pitchers slow their motion down on a changeup. If you watch it, you can see it. But he doesn’t do that.”

Pedro Martinez: “When people are dead red looking for a fastball in the mid-90s and they have to blink when they see this changeup at 76 miles per hour, that’s abuse.”

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