Classic on deck, Williams gets first game action with timer

TEMPE, Ariz. -- Devin Williams' first Spring Training outing in Wednesday's 4-3 loss to the Angels went like this: One inning pitched, three flyouts to center field and no pitch timer violations.

It was a routine debut for the Brewers’ most methodical pitcher as he ramps up for the World Baseball Classic.

“I’m pretty much used to [the pitch timer] at this point,” said Williams, who, like all of the Brewers’ pitchers, has already thrown a series of bullpens and live batting practice sessions while on the clock. “Maybe I’ll adjust a little more as time goes on, but I felt pretty comfortable out there.”

He added: “It’s nothing foreign anymore.”

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Under MLB’s new rules, pitchers have 15 seconds to deliver their next pitch after they receive the ball back from the catcher or an umpire when the bases are empty, and 20 seconds when there are runners on base. That’s something to watch for with Williams, who took the fifth-longest break between pitches among the pitchers who qualified for Statcast’s “tempo” leaderboard last season.

That metric is not equivalent to the pitch timer, however, because it measures the time between each pitch, and not the time the clock starts. Statcast does calculate an equivalent, which estimated that Williams averaged 18.7 seconds between receiving the ball and throwing a pitch. So, when runners are on base in 2023, he may have to speed things up at times.

“I don’t typically rush, other guys work faster than me,” Williams said. “But that was a part of the game. I guess it won’t be anymore.”

Pitching against the Angels on an overcast Wednesday afternoon is one thing, and pitching in the WBC will be another. Williams is scheduled to throw another inning for the Brewers on Sunday against Seattle before joining Team USA to prepare for the tournament. He doesn’t have to go far; the Americans’ base is in Scottsdale at the Giants’ facility.

At the moment, Williams is scheduled to get one additional exhibition tuneup in Team USA’s uniform against the Giants on March 8. Then, it’s on to bright lights and rowdy crowds at Chase Field. The U.S. is in Pool C with Mexico, Canada, Colombia and Great Britain.

“I’m sure the crowds will have us amped-up and ready to go,” Williams said.

For now, Williams’ head is with the Brewers. He was happy with his fastball against the Angels on Wednesday, and while his changeup was not pinpoint, he was pleased he threw strikes. It’s normal for a changeup to take some work at this time of year because of the dry Arizona air.

As he got ready to pitch on Wednesday, center fielder Garrett Mitchell predicted three strikeouts. Williams responded, “I’m going to need you out there.”

Three deep fly balls later, Williams said, “I was right."