MESA, Ariz. -- On the last day of last season, the old Chase Anderson promised a new Chase Anderson. On the first day of the new season, he looked a little bit of both.

The Brewers right-hander focused on the new after working the first inning of an 8-4 loss to the Cubs, which is outwardly exemplified by an altered delivery in which he lifts his hands up over his head for the tempo and balance that produced a career year in 2017. But when Anderson missed his spot with a curveball in the first inning and Kris Bryant deposited it onto the left field berm for a two-run home run, it represented a reminder of what went wrong during Anderson’s homer happy 2018.

The old Anderson was the Brewers’ Opening Day starter a year ago. The new one hopes he has a spot in the rotation.

“I’m playing like I do,” said Anderson. “Never take anything for granted, never be complacent, and always try to grow in the game with the analytics. Try to utilize that stuff to get the best of my ability. I know if I do that, it’s going to take me to the next level.

“I feel like I have a job. I know this team is counting on us as a starting staff, because we didn’t go out and get a big-name free agent. With the guys in-house what we have, with the young guys like Corbin Burnes, Brandon Woodruff, Freddy Peralta, with myself, Jhoulys [Chacin], Jimmy [Nelson] comes back healthy, there’s a long list of guys who can do a job. I think we’re a little bit underrated. That’s how we like it.”

Anderson and right-hander Zach Davies both launched comeback bids on Saturday against the Cubs after enduring frustrating finishes to 2018.

Davies battled shoulder and back injuries that limited him to 66 innings on 13 regular-season starts, and he didn’t find his way to the postseason roster until Gio Gonzalez injured an ankle in the National League Championship Series.

Anderson pitched a beauty in San Diego on Opening Day but struggled to repeat his delivery as the season wore on and surrendered an NL-worst 30 home runs. The 3.93 ERA was respectable, but the Brewers removed Anderson from the rotation during their final road trip, and he didn’t throw a single postseason pitch.

“I think we’re both in similar scenarios,” Davies said.

“For me,” said Anderson, “the way last season ended, coming into this year I have a little bit more motivation, a little bit more fuel to get back to the pitcher I know I can be, and hopefully lead a staff to pitch in the postseason. I want to be a part of that as much as anybody. What we did last year was awesome.”

He added, “I have a little chip on my shoulder, but I think it’s good for everyone to have that. And not just me. I know we have a little target on our back from what we did last year.”

So what’s new for Anderson? For starters, he spent the winter overhauling the mechanics that failed him in 2018 and produced what he called “unacceptable” results. Even when Anderson identified problems, he struggled to fix them on the fly.

Over the winter, Anderson conferenced several times with new Brewers pitching coach Chris Hook and bullpen coach Steve Karsay. Together, they kicked around ideas to create a more fluid motion and keep better balanced on his back leg to create the downhill plane so vital to his 2017 breakthrough.

Among the pitchers he studied was fellow Texan Nolan Ryan, who lifted his arms over his head in his windup.

“Now when I’m over my head [with my hands], I look down at my foot and make sure it’s full contact with the rubber,” Anderson said. “With that, I feel like my hips are able to go down the slope and I’m able to get that direct line toward home plate, and I’m able to get that direct line. Which is going to help me execute in the strike zone and as I expand later in in counts.”

It’s a lot of moving parts.

“I think, not unlike a hitter who's constantly making adjustments to get locked in, he just never quite got as locked in as he wanted to be in 2018,” said manager Craig Counsell. “When Chase's delivery really clicks, that's when we got a little more velocity from him in points in 2017. That's what he's looking to get back to and trying to capture. He's trying to capture the best version of himself.”

Beyond those fixes, Anderson said, “It’s a mental thing. It’s being mentally strong, and able to put that into work physically.”