Dodgers News: Alex Vesia Surprised by Quick Adjustment to Pitch Clock
We’re knee-deep into the pitch clock era — maybe ankle-deep. And for Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia the idea of a pitch clock was something of a concern heading into the spring. He spoke with DodgersNation.com recently about the early adjustment to the new rule. It turns out, the notoriously slow worker is actually surprised by his success so far.
“It’s been an adjustment. My first outing I was kind of surprised I didn’t get any violations called on me, so I think that’s step in the right direction. Definitely that was something that was approached, like, ‘hey you do take your time’ and what not. But it’s been fine.”
Vesia to Doug McKain earlier this spring
Vesia was as aware as anyone that he was among the slower working pitchers in the game last season. He enjoys walking around the mound, adjusting his jersey, grabbing the rosin bag. He was someone that soaked up his opportunities to be out on the field. But baseball says you can’t do that anymore.
At Dodgers FanFest last month, he told DodgersNation.com that he did have some concerns over his ability to get comfortable out there.
“I think the biggest concern is being able to do my routine — go behind the mound, rub the ball and kind of reset myself and go. If it has to be a little bit quicker, that’s ok, I’m not worried about it.”
The results have been a little mixed for Alex so far. He hasn’t had any pitch clock violations but he has allowed 2 runs over 3.2 innings (4.91 ERA) up to this point. However, the left-hander is usually a slow starter in the spring, owning a 4.79 ERA over 24 career spring training outings.
Emotions will run higher during the season and in big moments, Vesia will need to find a new gear to stick to his goal for the year.
“What ever situation I’m put in, put up a zero. Keep it simple.”
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