Catching Up with Tim Cossins
Major League Field Coordinator and Catching Instructor Tim Cossins joined the Orioles prior to the start of the 2019 season and is in his 20th season as a manager, coach, or Major League bullpen catcher. Prior to his coaching career, Cossins appeared in 255 Minor League games, mostly as a catcher, between the Texas Rangers, New York Yankees, and Montreal Expos organizations.
Cossins sat down with Orioles broadcasters Geoff Arnold and Brett Hollander in this week’s episode of “Inside the Yard” to discuss the addition of catcher Austin Wynns to the Major League roster, Adley Rutschman’s development, the art of pitch calling and framing, his catcher’s gameday routine, and comparing catching to music.
“Austin’s (Wynns) approach to the game brings a new level of energy. He knows the league, he studies, he’s been here before so he’s not overwhelmed by it,” Cossins began.
On Adley Rutschman, the Orioles No. 1 overall selection in the 2019 First-Year Player draft, Cossins could not be more impressed.
“He’s in a really good spot. He is as far advanced as any of the other guys I’ve had. He’s got a really good baseball IQ and a great work ethic. Usually when you get a guy out of the draft there is a period of adjustments you make to get them going in the right direction, but with Adley, it’s more about refining certain things and sort of staying out of the way.”
Cossins gave in-depth insight to what people don’t understand about pitch calling, adding “you can throw the right pitch in the wrong spot and have it be successful, and vice versa, and those things all bleed into somebody calling a good game.
“What people can see is the reflective part of the position which is body language and energy, and it goes a long way. There is an art to that for sure.”
In reference to pitch framing, Arnold asked about the challenges of presenting a pitch to the umpire. Cossins explained, “Pitch framing is a real hot topic… It’s one of those subtleties that dictates a win or a loss and gives us a competitive advantage. It’s one of those things that guys are always working on.”
Cossins expanded on the day-to-day routine of getting a catcher ready for the next pitcher’s start, from doing their defensive routines in the cages to pregame meetings before batting practice. But Cossins did not shy away from giving his catcher’s credit of their own.
“The catchers are also studying on their own. I feel like we have a really good foundation in place for our guys to study and get advantages… There’s an art to it. You have to find a way to get guys work that’s not taxing them, and you have to try to ramp up things that need to be improved.”
Arnold asked Cossins his opinion of catchers catching down on one knee, to which he laughed, “I’m in favor of whatever makes the human being standing behind him raise his right hand.”
“I come from a player development background, so for me, it’s very difficult to make every guy catch the same way,” Cossins elaborated. “Catching is like music, you have to appeal to the guy behind you, play the music he likes, and make him dance.”
They ended the discussion with their “Fun Five” and joked about getting a band together with the musically talented coaching staff. You can listen to the full podcast episode here.
You can listen to the full podcast episode above or wherever you stream podcasts.