Mariners Insider: How George Kirby is mixing pitches differently now

George being George? Nah, this is Seattle Mariners pitcher George Kirby taking a step forward – from an elite starting point.

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No longer is it just all about “filling up the strike zone with heaters,” his standard answer when asked what he did or what he needed to do. Since May 29, we have seen Kirby mix his pitches more, going so far as to occasionally throw more sliders than fastballs.

“I throw six pitches. So, you know, let’s use them all,” Kirby said in a recent Clubhouse Insider interview for the Mariners radio pregame show. “And I’ve been more comfortable just landing the off-speed and getting out of the zone when I need to, and using the two heaters off those pitches. I think I’ve just grown in that sense, being able to kind of rely on five or six pitches instead of two or three.”

The 26-year-old Kirby owns a 3.39 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and MLB-leading 9.91 strikeouts per walk ratio, and he’s been especially tough in his eight outings since May 29 with a 2.19 ERA and 0.97 WHIP. His last scheduled start before next week’s All-Star break is Saturday in Anaheim.

A benefit Kirby has found in mixing up his repertoire, and therefore not just relying on his fastballs, is other pitches are improving as he throws them more. He believes the hitters have noticed, as well.

“I think it’s mostly about just having guys honoring all my stuff,” he said. “I never did a really good job of throwing off-speed for a strike and showing it, so I feel like a lot of guys would just sit on the heater. I think gameplanning has gotten a lot better, and (I’m) just trying to put a little more emphasis on that.”

Pitch-wise, Kirby has recently changed his curveball, using the Zac Gallen grip which gives him more vertical movement than the grip he previously used.

“I like to tweak stuff,” he said. “I like to make little changes when I need to, and I’m not scared to try the next day in a game.”

Studying and sometimes taking grips from other pitchers seems to be almost a hobby for Kirby. It begged the question: Has he heard of anyone using a George Kirby grip?

“Hmmm,” he said with a chuckle. “I haven’t. No, I haven’t. I hope someone’s using some of my grips. That’d be cool.”

Beyond changing grips, Kirby said if he could add another pitch, it would be a cutter.

“It could be good in certain situations,” he said. “Two is better than one, and three is better than three heaters.”

There’s the fastball. Never too far away from George Kirby.

Catch the Clubhouse Insider on the pregame show on Seattle Sports before every Mariners game. Listen to Shannon Drayer’s conversation with George Kirby in the podcast at this link or in the player near the top of this post.

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