Cubs reliever Carl Edwards Jr. had an awful end to the 2018 season. He lost command of his pitches and confidence in himself on the mound and was eventually left off the Wild Card roster because of a forearm issue. Now, he has a new pitching delivery.
Pitchers threw as a group for the first time this year in Mesa on Wednesday and the new delivery by Edwards caught everyone’s attention at Cubs camp.
Side sessions for Edwards, Lester, Hendricks, Darvish, Duncan Robinson and Chatwood. Edgertronic cameras set up behind CJ and Chatwood with Rapsodo devices behind both their catchers. pic.twitter.com/ycTqzZvS29
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) February 13, 2019
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Did you get a hint of Kenley Jansen in Edwards’ new delivery? Well, congrats, you nailed it.
Edwards spoke to reporters on Thursday and confirmed that the new pause in his delivery was taken from the Dodgers dominant closer.
Edwards also talked about his hitch/pause in his delivery. Believes it helps keep him under control physically and modeled it somewhat off Kenley Jansen's delivery.
— Tony Andracki (@TonyAndracki23) February 14, 2019
Carl Edwards Jr. said, yes, he studied Kenley Jansen’s delivery this offseason and incorporated the hesitation over the rubber. Hope is that it helps hone his command of the zone. pic.twitter.com/QtsGnUoxtd
— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) February 14, 2019
If you missed my radio report, Carl Edwards Jr. says he's mimicking Kenley Jensen's pause in his delivery as attempts to gain better control of his stuff: "Keeps me over the rubber longer and in the zone more."
— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) February 14, 2019
Carl Edwards Jr. has a nasty cutting fastball. It’s one of the best pitches in the game and because of it he was yielding one of the softest contact rates in MLB during the 2017 season. Yet, the righty has had his struggles with command, walking close to five batters per nine innings during his MLB career.
Likewise, Jansen has a terrifying cutter too, but unlike Edwards has pretty good command and averages nearly half the walks Edwards has.
So, let’s hope the new adjustment helps Edwards, who’s been good but the Cubs would really like to see him take the next level.