Cincinnati Reds rookie starting pitcher Brandon Williamson faced Miami Marlins All-Star outfielder Jorge Soler in the top of the sixth inning Monday night. Williamson got ahead 0-2 in the count with a backdoor cutter that clipped the right edge of the strike zone, and he used that strike to set up a strike three changeup that tailed off the plate.
These were the pitches Williamson wasn’t executing in 2022 and early in 2023 when Williamson was struggling. Now, Williamson is reestablishing his place in the Reds’ young core.
Williamson allowed just one run in 6 ⅔ innings with a career-high nine strikeouts in the Reds’ 5-2 win over the Marlins. He has a 3.19 ERA since the start of July while consistently pitching at least into the sixth inning, and Williamson called Monday’s game the best start of his life.
“(Reds pitching coach Derek Johnson) has been very specific and forward with what is expected and what needs to change and how I can get better,” Williamson said. “The uptick in velocity is directly correlated to working with him. Throwing more strikes is correlated to him.”
Returning to top form as starting pitcher
Williamson pitched like this when he was a top prospect in the Seattle Mariners system in 2021. The Reds acquired him as the centerpiece of the Jesse Winker and Eugenio Súarez trade in 2022, but Williamson battled shoulder soreness and got away from what he did best.
His velocity dropped, and he lost confidence in his fastball. Williamson wasn’t able to set up his low-and-away curveball, and his strikeout rate dropped. His changeup had been his most impressive pitch, but it didn’t move as well in 2022.
It all snowballed in the most challenging season of Williamson’s baseball career. Between Double-A and Triple-A last season, he posted a pedestrian 4.11 ERA, and he slid down prospect rankings.
“I didn’t feel like myself physically or mentally,” Williamson said.
Williamson’s inconsistency continued into spring training. He had every opportunity to be the Reds’ fifth starter at the start of the year, and a big test was a start against the Mariners at the end of the spring. He allowed nine runs in 2 ⅔ innings, and Connor Overton made the Reds’ Opening Day roster.
“I needed to throw all my pitches for strikes as hard as I could,” Williamson said. “I was lazy with some stuff. I’d think about needing a strike. I’d just try to spin in a slider in and they hit it. I had to pitch with intent every time. There can’t be “just get one here” pitches. I have to rip my pitches. It doesn’t matter who’s in the box, even a close friend like Julio Rodriguez. I just had to trust myself.”
Called up from Louisville to face the Colorado Rockies
Despite his 6.62 ERA in Triple-A this year, the Reds called up Williamson out of necessity in May. He made a great start, allowing just one run in 5 ⅔ innings. But in that game against the Colorado Rockies, he wasn’t the type of pitcher that he wanted to be.
Williamson relied on throwing his new cutter and his slider for strikes against Colorado. It worked as he got a lot of soft contact, but there was a lot of room for him to grow.
“In the past, I’ve been a really good fastball pitcher,” Williamson said. “I didn’t have any emphasis behind my fastballs, even when I first got up here. I was relying on my cutter and execution of locations.”
Williamson cleaned up his mechanics while working with Johnson and developed a more consistent way to use his legs in his windup. Williamson’s velocity increased by a few miles per hour. He gained the ability to throw his fastball in the top half of the strike zone for strikes, and then Williamson started locating that pitch on both sides of the strike zone.
Now, Williamson’s fastball is back to being his best pitch. He has rediscovered his changeup as a consistent pitch that gets swings and misses. He’s locating sliders for strikes and getting batters to flail at curveballs in the dirt.
“He has gotten better,” Reds first baseman Joey Votto said. “I saw him in Louisville, and he’s a different pitcher. I don’t want that to sound disrespectful or to minimize his effort in Louisville. But this is a different pitcher than I saw in Louisville. He’s sharper, throwing harder. He’s locked in on execution.”
Against the Marlins on Monday, Williamson consistently got ahead in the count. He landed backdoor cutters that looked headed toward the batter’s box but darted back over the plate. He challenged hitters with high fastballs and watched them swing and miss. He located his curveball for strikes early in the counts. He used one pitch to set up another.
Williamson credits Johnson for helping him develop and execute a game plan more consistently, and Williamson’s game plan was working on Monday. For a Reds team that desperately needs dependable starting pitching to stay in the playoff race, Williamson is the latest breakout rookie who has changed their season.
“For me, seeing the difference in such a short period of time is of course welcome,” Votto said. “Not often do players make such sudden changes in such short periods of time.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How Cincinnati Reds pitcher Brandon Williamson turned his year around
