Pavlidis: Trying to understand Drew Storen’s struggles
From SABR member Harry Pavlidis at the Washington Post on July 29, 2013:
Drew Storen has been optioned to the Class AAA Syracuse Chiefs. Just last week I had predicted he would see some improvement in his pitching line over the final months. What I hadn’t observed was the breakdown in Storen’s mechanics that led to the demotion. Changes in Storen’s pitch movement and speed have emerged, along with some different approaches to mixing his pitches, that can be at least in part attributed to the mechanical issues. If the change in approach is related to feeling a need to compensate for the other issues, we should see some return to prior approach when he returns.
The Natstradamus Blog took a look at Storen’s pitch mix and results this weekend, featuring the data I help publish at Brooksbaseball.net. The analysis had two important (and related) observations and one suggestion. Storen’s slider had lost about 2 mph and, to summarize the blog, didn’t have the same bite as it did in 2012. His change-up and fastball remained at a similar level of effectiveness, which is reflected in the suggestion to focus on those two pitches while in the International League.
Read the full article here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/nationals-journal/wp/2013/07/29/trying-to-understand-drew-storens-struggles/
Originally published: July 30, 2013. Last Updated: July 30, 2013.