Mariners’ Taijuan Walker looks back to 2014 to solve recent struggles
Jun 9, 2016, 12:58 AM | Updated: 2:06 pm
Taijuan Walker pitched eight scoreless innings and matched his career high with 11 strikeouts Wednesday. (AP)
(AP)
Two years ago in late September, Taijuan Walker was handed the ball with the Mariners in postseason contention and coming off what may have been the worst start of Felix Hernandez’s career.
Walker threw eight innings of four-hit, one-run ball against the Blue Jays in Toronto. Though he took the loss in the 1-0 game, it was an eye-opening performance, one in which you could see Walker looking back to when needed in the years to come.
Last week, in preparation for his start Wednesday night, Walker did exactly that.
“I needed to get back on track,” he said after pitching eight scoreless innings and matching his career high with 11 strikeouts in the Mariners’ 5-0 win over Cleveland. “Six, seven starts were really, really bad and the intensity level, the (velocity), everything was just down. I needed to figure something out, so I went back and I watched my Toronto start from two years ago to kind of see where my mechanics were and I really found out that I was really intense. I went after it from pitch one; I didn’t feel my way through. Just here you go; hit it if you can.”
Walker had talked about needing to up his intensity level following his start last week against Texas, when he allowed six runs over five innings for his fourth straight loss. It was a mystery to him why it was not there and no doubt a frustration for manager Scott Servais and pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr. Walker changed his mechanics to help generate more from his legs. But generating intensity is a different matter.
Walker would not disclose what he did to up his intensity but said that fellow pitcher James Paxton helped him out. He also pointed to the Toronto game and recalling the feeling of the situation the team was in at the time, trying to chase down a wild-card spot.
“I definitely remember,” he said. “I knew it was a big game and right now all these games count. Texas is a good ballclub and we want to stay right there. Coming off a four-game losing streak, it is really good to win two in a row and keep it going. It wasn’t just for myself; it was for my team. All the starting pitchers, it starts with us. If we can give six to seven strong innings, the bullpen is really good and the offense is going to do their thing and score runs for us.”
A formula for success. Over the last four games, Mariners starters have given up three earned runs. Nathan Karns will have the opportunity to keep it going Thursday night.
