Papelbon adds slider to mix
Posted on March 12th, 2008 - 5:04 am by BaseballTalkOnline
As if Jonathan Papelbon hasn’t been dominant enough with his fastball-split finger combination, now he’s mixing in a slider.
“I used to throw it when I was starting so it’s not like a new pitch, really,” Papelbon said. “It’s a natural arm slot for me to throw this pitch. It’s not like I’m going out of my delivery to execute this pitch. To me, it’s just a matter of staying one step ahead of the competition.”
Papelbon also hopes that the slider will prevent him from going into too many deep at bats and get outs in fewer pitches, allowing him to pitch more on back-to-back days.
Filed under: Boston Red Sox, Jonathan Papelbon