After striking out against Randy Wolf (a left handed pitcher) on a cutter, Mike Pelfrey wanted to learn how to use the pitch.
"They looked like they were 100 feet outside," Pelfrey said, "and they were actually right down the middle."
Pelfrey, after going back to the dugout, asked Carlos Beltran about how effective a cutter can really be.
His answer?
"Very effective" said Beltran
Pelfrey then went to pitching coach Dan Warthan, anxiously wanting to throw the cutter to add another pitch to his repertoire.
Since that Milwaukee trip, he has been practicing it, and he feels like he can use it now.
The cutter would be a very good addition to the already very good 2 seam fastball Pelfrey has.
"It's another weapon," He said. "I'll put it in their heads, hopefully get some outs with it, and it will be good."
Left handed hitters against Pelfrey have a batting average of .250 on the season. The cutter would be mainly used for left handed batters, as it would be running away from the batters to the right side since Pelfrey is a right handed thrower.
Pelfrey now has a wide variety of pitches using the two-seamer, four-seamer, slider, curveball and splitter, he just needs to know when to use them and get a feel for all of them. We have seen him up and down throughout the season. He has thrown a complete game, or he comes out flat with all his pitches. Maybe the cutter will help Pelfrey stay more consistent. At this point, Pelfrey's 4-6 record and 4.76 earned run average could use some help.
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