Change for the better

There is a scene at the end of the forgettable Rocky IV movie when Rocky Balboa, who has just defeated Ivan Drago, tells the Russian crowd, "If I can change, and you can change, then everybody can change."

What does that have to do with baseball?

Sometimes the people most resistant to change are pitchers. That shouldn't be the case because pitchers who are unwilling to adjust usually don’t last long in professional baseball.

This little fact is why Wild Things pitcher Matt Fraudin was willing to take a suggestion from pitching coach Ben Moore and make a change in his pitching arsenal. The early results have been fantastic.

Moore, the Wild Things’ first-year pitching coach but a veteran of 12 professional seasons as a player, recently suggested that Fraudin add a sinking two-seam fastball and try to get ground balls with the pitch. An Upper St. Clair native, Fraudin had used a four-seam fastball with considerable success while at Gardner-Webb University in North Carolina. The four-seamer, with its rising action, was a good strikeout pitch for Fraudin, who averaged more than eight strikeouts per game in his college career and 11.2 as a senior this spring.

Fraudin’s four-seam fastball, however, didn’t have the kind of velocity that major league scouts covet, so Fraudin went undrafted in June. He signed with the Wild Things in July and it didn’t take long for Moore to offer the young right-hander some advice.

“I didn’t tell him to do it, I merely suggested he try a two-seam fastball because he doesn’t throw 94 mph. From my experience, if you don’t have perfect command or don’t throw your fastball at a velocity above the hitting level of the league, then you’re not going to play baseball as long as you possibly could.

“Two his credit, Matt took the initiative to work on it on his own and he found it in three days. The results have been impressive.”

Fraudin (1-1) has made three starts for Washington, including a 10-1 win Wednesday night over the Frontier Greys. It was Fraudin’s first professional win.

Fraudin gave up one runs over five innings July 29 against River City in his first pro start. His next outing had a rough beginning. Fraudin gave up three walks and five runs in the first inning against Traverse City Aug. 6.

“It took time to get used to the mound at Traverse City,” Fraudin said.

After the rocky first inning, Fraudin retired 15 consecutive Beach Bums and pitched six innings in a 5-4 loss. The start against the Greys was Fraudin’s best to date. He gave up only three hits and one runs over eight innings. After the game, he credited the two-seam fastball, which produced 11 groundball outs.

“All I threw in college was the four-seamer. I’d mix in a few offspeed pitches,” Fraudin said. “Here, I’ve been able to throw the two-seamer and get a lot of run on it. I don’t have as much velocity but there’s a lot of movement.”