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Tyler Glasnow Dominates in Recent Start, While Mixing His Pitches

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INDIANAPOLIS – The bridge to Pittsburgh is getting shorter for Tyler Glasnow in every outing.

His recent display of dominance carried over into Saturday. The start marked the first time this season that Glasnow has worked into the seventh inning. He struck out 11 hitters and just had the opposition off balance all night.

“I feel good,” Glasnow said. “It’s nice to go out every fifth day and throw [well].”

Glasnow mixed speeds and pitches well, including his changeup and curve, leading to the strong results. He still has some work to do on his curve, and most notably that changeup, but he has seen progression in each of those pitches in his last two starts. It has gotten better and he is noticeably more comfortable with each.

Though Glasnow, who just completed his 14th start at Triple-A, walked five in his previous start on Sunday, he also struck out seven in five innings. On Saturday night, he bounced back by walking just one. He was certainly effectively wild in the first couple innings of each game, but the control improved as the outing went along.

The wildness has led to Glasnow elevating his pitch count at times and having to leave early than otherwise expected. This was not the case Saturday night.

One other focus lately has been on the changeup. He threw several changeups, showcasing improvement on the pitch, while getting impressive downward movement on some.

“Some days, [the changeup] will be good,” Glasnow said. “Some days, it will be off. That is just how pitching is. Each day, I am just going to keep throwing it no matter what and try to make adjustments with it, but I have been feeling really good with it lately.”

A couple of weeks back, Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington came out and said that Glasnow needs to show that changeup to make it to the next level. He also said that it may be something that they would mandate Glasnow to throw more. Since that point, Glasnow has seen an improvement in both the amount he has thrown it and the success of the pitch.

Glasnow realizes the importance of having an off-speed pitch with the strong fastball that he possesses.

“I think that I just need to keep going out every fifth day and continue to throw my changeup, curveball, and off-speed stuff in hitters counts,” Glasnow said. “At the rate I’m going, I’m learning a lot right now, so hopefully everything will work out.”

Another aspect of the game that Glasnow has put an emphasis on is controlling the running game. After his promotion to Indianapolis last season, the tall right-hander saw runners stealing at will on him. Along with throwing the changeup more in recent games, Glasnow has also been throwing over to first abundantly more. He made no secret as to why.

“[Holding runners] has been a big emphasis,” Glasnow said. “I am working on the pick-off move and I am trying to be quicker to the plate and changing my looks. That is another thing that experience will teach me.”

In his six starts this season, teams have only attempted five steals against Glasnow, and three have been caught. Jacob Stallings has thrown well, but Glasnow’s hard work has also paid off.

Glasnow clearly has the fastball that is Major League ready. He also has the stuff that projects well at the next level. The only question is not if he will be ready, but when. With the past three outings and the success that he has seen with the off-speed pitches, Glasnow is nearing the point where he is prepared for the big league lights. And it is just in time for a potential call up in the next month or so.

Ryan Palencer
Ryan Palencer
Ryan has been following Indianapolis baseball for most of his life, and the Pirates since they became the affiliate in 2005. He began writing for Pirates Prospects in 2013, in a stint that ran through 2016 (with no service time manipulation played in). Ryan rejoined the team in 2022, covering Indianapolis once again. He has covered the Pirates in four different big league stadiums. Ryan was also fortunate enough to cover the 2015 Futures Game in Cincinnati.

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