Tommy Henry Excels in First Spring Training Start
The Diamondbacks lost to the Rockies in their Spring Training opener 3-0. The bats were quiet except for a couple of players. The pitching was on point though as they gave up just seven hits, three runs, three walks, and seven strikeouts. The Rockies pitching dominated the D-backs offense with 16 strikeouts and just five walks given up in nine innings. However, the star of the game was Tommy Henry who is in the midst of a tightly contested battle for the fifth starting rotation spot with Ryne Nelson, Slade Cecconi, and Bryce Jarvis.
Tommy Henry was excellent with all of his pitches today. He commanded them all around the strike zone and attacked hitters. He didn't work around the zone or was nervous. Henry went right after them. Henry's fastball topped out at 92.6 mph which was a good sight to see considering his elbow injury last season that wiped out his final month-plus of games.
Henry pitched two innings and allowed just one bleeding-eye single through the middle of the infield. He struck out three batters, including a nasty curveball that caught the Rockies' Sean Bouchard looking.
Speaking about how he felt before the game, Henry mentioned "I had a little bit of pregame jitters, which felt good. That’s always fun. And there was a great crowd out there, so it was fun to just be a part of the buzz, get the feet wet and settle in."
Henry was excited to face another jersey on the field that wasn't a D-backs jersey and was glad to "etch that off the list" as he works towards a hopeful Opening Day roster spot.
What he was working on today and during the offseason was his "lower-half mechanics...and really focusing on my hips sturdying up my front side to make my hand come out in a more consistent pattern."
Henry was glad that everything felt good and that it was mostly consistent in terms of his pitches and release points. "There's still some areas I've got to tune up, lessen breaking balls, arm side a little bit too much, missed with a sinker pretty big but got away with it. There's some things to tune up but for the most part, I was pretty happy with how the stuff was coming out."
Henry's goal is to not pitch from behind in the future or to stop being "effectively wild" and instead be in charge of the game and attack hitters.
Speaking with Manager Torey Lovullo, he thought "Tommy [Henry] threw the baseball really well. He gave us two quality innings...Great, great outing for him...He did exactly what we were looking for."
Other Highlights of the Game
Joc Pederson took a big stride toward proving he can hit left-handers in today's game. He had two at-bats and walked both times. The first time came against a tough left-hander Carson Palmquist. It was good to see that Pederson could stay patient at the plate, especially when it would be easy to rush or swing at everything in your first game action.
Pederson believes in taking walks and that it's "super important, I think a walk is just as good as a single, you like to get on first base, if not sometimes better as you get eight or nine pitches to get a walk compared to a first-pitch single."
It's unknown how much time Joc Pederson will be on the grass in the outfield this year, but the D-backs are giving him a shot to prove he's able to handle it. He's been working closely with D-backs coach Dave McKay to improve his defense. "Been working a lot with McKay who's the G.O.A.T. of outfield and baserunning...Working with him and just getting back to getting good jumps in the outfield and the first step and fine-tuning that part of my game."
"[McKay] connects with different players and personalities...His information is very detail-oriented. He doesn't miss any details. He has a standard and holds you accountable to that standard. So when you have all those three traits, I think it makes you a good coach. Every practice rep is like you're in a game."
Other highlights included Ketel Marte going 1-2 with a walk including hitting the first pitch of the game for a base hit. He showed off his glove at one point by making a diving grab that started a double play.
On the youngsters' side, Blaze Alexander had a statement game as he tries to snag a spot on the Opening Day roster as a utility infielder. The young shortstop had a marvelous double play in which he stepped on second and fired a rocket to first in the 5th inning. At the plate, Alexander smoked two line drives into the outfield to go 2-2 with a double. It was the only extra-base hit that the D-backs had all game.
Lovullo was impressed with Alexander, stating that "[He] played really well, a couple hits, and made some really nice defensive plays." Lovullo continued about Alexander's hard-hit double and single by saying "The first one was off a lefty, it looked like it was a pitch that was chasing him in and he beat it to the "x" and barreled it... He was thinking about what was going to be thrown to him and jumped on a pitch that he got. He was expecting it and didn't miss it."
The Diamondbacks play again tomorrow against the Rockies only they will serve as the home team at Salt River Fields. Ryne Nelson is expected to start as he battles for the No. 5 spot in the rotation. Lourdes Gurriel Jr, Corbin Carroll, and Alek Thomas are all expected to start in the outfield.
