Early this past season, Lance Lynn was wearing his fourth uniform in less than two years, and his pitching was a mess. On May 4, he walked five batters and struck out only three, giving up five runs and inflating his ERA to nearly 6. He was in the second month of a three-year deal with the Texas Rangers, he was about to turn 32, and at this point in his career he was a pitcher you were pretty sure you understood.
Two years earlier, as a Cardinal, Lynn had thrown more sinking fastballs than four-seamers. But as a Ranger, he reimagined himself: After May 4, almost 80 percent of his fastballs were four-seamers. He also threw his slider — some call his a cutter — more than he ever had. He even added a tick of velocity to all of his pitches. “Faced with a crisis that could have sent his season into a death spiral, Lynn was willing to accept and embrace the data-heavy approach of the coaching staff,” Evan Grant later wrote for the Dallas Morning News.
These were not the small adjustments a pitcher is always working…
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