Then he wonders if maybe because he was pitching up in the zone, his changeup lost some of is effectiveness. "There are so many left-handed hitters," he said, "and unless it's perfect, they really hit the pitch down and away. Donald Zackary "Zack" Greinke ( born October 21, 1983) is a right-handed pitcher for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). There is another Greinke story I wasn't able to get into the piece, one I think I've told before but I'm not sure. It was not hard to get six-time All-Star Zack Greinke’s former teammates and coaches to tell stories about his time in Kansas City from 2004 to 2010.
His swing even now has a hole in it -- it's something he simply has to overcome and it's a daily struggle --and in those early days pitchers just ate him up. Greinke was a phenom. It doesn't really have much to do with anything except, well, it's just a perfect little Greinke …
He figured that Greinke must have found something in his swing, something small, some little flaw that he could fix and it would turn his entire season around. Greinke turned it on. By RotoWire Staff Oct 6, 2020 at 7:55 pm ET 1 ... Our Latest Stories Six players to get In Dynasty Frank Stampfl • 1 …
In a piece by Zach Buchanan of The Athletic, Greinke’s former Arizona teammates reminisced about their time together with the team. Gordon just couldn't hit anything at all, and one day Greinke came up to him and said he wanted to show Gordon something in the video room. Gordon was thrilled -- Greinke is renowned for his baseball eye. "Do more of that," Greinke said.There are so many where that come from, some from my own life, like the time Greinke refused to pose for the Sports Illustrated cover story I wrote (they had to shoot him from behind while he warmed up in the bullpen), or the time that he was on a long road trip and had his girlfriend at the time read to him a long story that I had written about him. ‘One in 10 million’: An oral history of Zack Greinke’s years with the Royals. That's a lot of road behind us. He will probably stay in baseball after he's done. And then, at his low point, Zack Greinke came up to him. So, I wrote about Zack Greinke for like the 11 millionth time. I relate the first time I ever interviewed him. It was much harder choosing which ones to include in this story looking back a decade after his last game in a Royals uniform. It doesn't really have much to do with anything except, well, it's just a perfect little Greinke story. "Yeah, that's it," I said.Greinke smiled again and immediately started complaining about how everyone on Twitter keeps talking about politics. So, I wrote about Zack Greinke for like the 11 millionth time. Greinke said. At the time, you might remember, Gordon was a serious phenom that year, in the same category as, say, Kris Bryant before this season began. Affeldt gave up a home run and got pulled from the game, and he was angry at himself. Subscribe now to get full access to the new sports page. He hasn't quite figured it out.
It … I've seen him through good times and bad, talked with him when he was close to giving up the game, talked with him when he loathed pitching and considered becoming a shortstop, talked with him when he gingerly made his way back, talked with him when he was dealing, when he was about as unhittable as any pitcher in the last decade or more. "You know," he said, "that wasn't a bad pitch. RECAP: Greinke's strong debut and Goldy's 4-RBI day lead the #Dbacks to a big #DbacksSpring win over the Dodgers: https://t.co/u8LJrUM2xC pic.twitter.com/q1Vl38OBAb. My two favorites, quickly: Once his teammate Jeremy Affeldt was pitching in relief. "it was a bad pitch. "I pitched worse," he told the reporters, though he didn't go into it much. I ask him if he wants to add more velocity, and he smiles. I ask him if it's a problem, and he shrugs. Click the link we sent to , or click here to log in.
The poor guy was hitting .173 in early June, and he'd struck out 55 times in 53 games, and he was taking it out to the field, and even though he still carried himself in that placid and even-tempered way that now marks him as one of the better players in baseball, you could tell: He was seriously lost. There is another Greinke story I wasn't able to get into the piece, one I think I've told before but I'm not sure. His velocity dropped every so slightly last year. "It is fascinating to see the game through Greinke's eyes, even a little bit. "I don't know," he said sadly, "I can't block everyone.". This is the part of him that is so easy to miss because he's so quirky. He sees things nobody else seems to see.
"Thanks, Zack," he said. "Follow me. "I don't have a good answer yet," he said.And then Greinke talked a little bit about velocity. Please. So Gordon was pretty excited when Greinke called him into the video room. He had just been called up from Kansas City's Class A team after going 11-1 with a 1.14 ERA. They watched it together. Greinke is quietly having what could be a Hall of Fame career. "Thanks, Zack," Affeldt said sarcastically. The mind whirls.Friday against the Dodgers was just Greinke's first spring start. MLB.com columnist Joe Posnanski is a No. "But then Greinke begins talking about that, saying he wouldn't change anything just to gain a few mph because in that velocity range it's more important to have your pitches in sync. But it didn't work out that way.So Greinke wonders if maybe he was somehow tipping the changeup by throwing it from a slightly different arm slot than his fastball. "That got me halfway across Florida. That variety is what has marked Greinke's career.
Enter your email to read this article for free. "Thanks," I said. He followed Greinke to to the monitor. Greinke made his MLB debut with the Royals in 2004. Greinke won an American League Cy Young Award, almost won another in the National League, and he seems to have a good shot at 3,000 strikeouts (2,021 heading into this season). The guy hit it. For your security, we need to re-authenticate you. It was at the All-Star Futures Game in Chicago in 2003. Greinke's teammates will tell you: The guy's kind of a baseball savant. Greinke said suddenly, like he always does when he's ready to stop talking. He was beat up all year -- strained oblique, stiffness in his throwing shoulder -- but there was something else going on. SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- This is how the conversation started after Zack Greinke's first start of the spring on Friday, a 15-3 D-backs win over the Dodgers:Me: So how did you feel today?Greinke: Really? That's what you want to ask me?Me: Yeah, not really.We've played this game for quite some time.
After his age-32 season, he has 51 career Wins Above Replacement (WAR) and 155 wins as a pitcher, a combination that compares well with Steve Carlton, Bob Gibson and Warren Spahn when they were his age.
In any case, Gordon came up to the most extreme expectations and he struggled. "I thought it was all right," he said.Greinke didn't say any more. This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. He's still trying to get things straight in his mind.Greinke talks me through it just a little bit. He has also pitched for the Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The video was ... yep: Zack Greinke hitting a home run. In fact, I'm pretty sure Gordon was the first player in Baseball America history to be named minor league player of the year just one year after being named amateur player of the year. "But if I could add five mph," he said, "yeah, I'd change whatever. He smiled. Fun stuff. It would be worth it. But underneath it all, I think it was just too much for him. 1 New York Times best-selling author, an Emmy Award-winning writer and has been awarded National Sportswriter of the Year.