‘Pissed Off’ Bubba Chandler Determined to Fix Early-Season Control Woes
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Bubba Chandler didn’t deal with the control issues that sometimes plague rookie starting pitchers during his first taste of the big leagues.
Last season, the right-hander only issued four walks across 31.1 innings and did not issue a single free pass combined between his final three starts of the season — a span of 16.2 innings.
But so far this year, Chandler has been struggling to find the zone. He didn’t allow a hit but walked six batters in his first start of the season, a Pirates’ 8-3 win against the Reds in Cincinnati last Tuesday.
Control issues were once again present for Chandler in the Pirates’ 5-0 loss to the San Diego Padres on Monday night at PNC Park.
“Very pissed off,” Chandler said following the loss. “Hate that we lost, but again, I’m just setting our team up for failure right now, with the guys having to come in out of the ‘pen a lot sooner than they should. That stuff’s got to get cleaned up.”
Chandler’s outing on Monday started off strong. He allowed a pair of hits and only walked one batter through the first three innings but unraveled as his night went on. In the fourth inning, he issued a one-out walk to Manny Machado, who came around to score on a Nick Castellanos double three batters later.
Chandler then walked two of the first three batters he faced to begin the fifth inning and San Diego tacked on two more runs. Jackson Merrill doubled on a ball over the head of Bryan Reynolds in left, which led to manager Don Kelly’s decision to take Chandler out of the game. Reliever Yohan RamÃrez then allowed one of his two inherited runners to score.
“Pretty bad. I mean, it’s piss-poor,” Chandler said when assessing his outing. “Hits are fine, it’s stuff that’s gonna happen, but not competing in the zone is just pathetic.”
Chandler’s final line read 4.1 innings, five hits, three runs, four walks, four strikeouts, 83 pitches/48 strikes. Through his first two starts of the season, he’s walked 10 in 8.2 innings.
The 23-year-old isn’t exactly sure what the reasons are for his high walk totals, but he’s determined to find solutions.
“Some days you feel it, some days you haven’t,” said Chandler. “Felt like the last two times I haven’t, but there’s better days to come. I’ll work really hard.”
The good news for Chandler is that his body feels healthy and the radar gun would agree. In his outing against the Reds, he threw 16 pitches that were at least 100 mph and topped out at 101.3. On Monday against San Diego, he threw 13 pitches that were at least 100 mph and topped out at 101.2.
He also featured some good changeups and got a pair of whiffs on five swings against his slider.
While Chandler is frustrated by too many walks to begin the year, he knows there is still plenty of season left and will look for better results the next time he steps onto the mound.
“It’s a long year. Feel great. It’s kind of all you can ask for is, body’s in a good spot. Doing everything I can every day to get out there and compete. Just got to get better.”
More about:Pirates