This reliever's changeup is baffling hitters

MILWAUKEE -- For many a pitcher, the changeup is last to come. For the Brewers’ Devin Williams, who made the highlight reels at Byron Buxton’s expense on Tuesday, it was one of the first pitches to come.

“I started throwing like that as a kid,” Williams said. “Like, when I played catch with my friends, just to mess with people, trying to make them miss the ball when I threw it to them. That’s what turned into my changeup. I’ve had that since I was maybe 10 years old.”

Now he’s 25, a former top Brewers pitching prospect whose star faded due to Tommy John surgery but is shining again thanks to a power fastball and one of baseball’s best changeups. Including Tuesday’s outing against the Twins -- one of five scoreless innings dealt by Brewers relievers in a come-from-behind 6-4 win at Miller Park -- Williams has faced 29 batters this season, with three hits, four walks and 12 strikeouts.

The most memorable strikeout victim to date was Buxton, the talented Twins outfielder who found himself in a 2-0 count against Williams with two outs and a runner aboard in the eighth inning of a tied game on Tuesday night. Williams threw a changeup inside, the quality of which was obvious from the awkward nature of Buxton’s swing.

“He's definitely selling out for a fastball there,” Williams said. “I just have enough confidence in my stuff right now to throw [a changeup] in that situation. I think that's been the biggest step forward for me this year."

It’s a special pitch. On average, according to Statcast, a changeup breaks in on a right-handed hitter by 13 inches. Williams’ average break is 18 inches.

Put differently, the vertical break of Williams’ changeup is 26 percent better than MLB average, and the horizontal break is 35 percent better. Those figures are way up from Williams’ percentages last season in his big league debut, and unlike some pitchers who have benefited from the Brewers’ high-tech pitching lab, Williams said he has refined the pitch by trial and error, especially after Spring Training was suspended due to the pandemic.

With a 2-1 count to Buxton, the next pitch was another changeup and another swinging strike. With Buxton now guessing in a 2-2 count, Williams spotted one of his power fastballs -- 98.1 mph -- at the low outside corner for a called strike three. That highlights the other problem for hitters. Williams’ average fastball is 96.4 mph, and his average changeup is 84 mph.

To Williams’ delight, the sequence against Buxton was spotlighted by the popular Pitching Ninja account on Twitter.

“I'm proud of Devin,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell said. “He's taken on a lot more responsibility in big innings for us. He's taken a step forward this year, there's no question about it. You can see his confidence out there. He believes in his stuff. I think this guy is going to be really, really important for us. You see him getting better out there. You see him understanding situations and his stuff. We need him. We need more guys back there and he's quickly establishing himself as one of those guys.”

Road tripping
The three-city, 10-game, 11-day jaunt to Chicago, Minneapolis and Pittsburgh that awaits the Brewers beginning Thursday at Wrigley Field will be two trips in one. The team will return home from Chicago on Sunday night to spend at least some of Monday’s off-day in Milwaukee before heading north to play the Twins.

Even with that one-night break from hotel living, the long trip will require strict attention to the team’s enhanced health and safety protocols.

“Road trips are challenging,” Counsell said. “It feels stricter on the road. That’s the way it’s been set up, so you prepare for it. Maybe you pack a little extra things to do in your room, things to keep you busy.”

"A lot of video games,” Williams said when asked about what’s ahead. “I’ve got a little video-game case that we all bring with us. I think pretty much everyone has one. So that's all we've been doing, is playing video games in the room."

Is it difficult being confined?

“It's not the most ideal situation,” Williams said. “But, you know, it's just one of those things that you have to deal with if you want to play."

Last call
• Reliever Ray Black has been playing catch at the team’s alternate training site as he recovers from a strained right rotator cuff, but his return to the mound is not imminent, Counsell said. Black was hurt during one of the Brewers’ intrasquad games in Summer Camp.

• It’s been 11 days since bench coach Pat Murphy suffered a heart attack during a Brewers workout at Miller Park, and he is doing well, Counsell reported Wednesday.

“It depends on the result of the game, but he is in very good spirits,” Counsell said. “He’s ‘Murph.’ He keeps us on our toes, for sure, and he challenges us. I know he’s missing this dearly, but it’s important that he gives this at least a month that he’s away from it and takes care of his health.”