Kornacki: Adcock Blowing Hitters Away
5/7/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 6, 2016
By Steve Kornacki
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Brett Adcock goes after hitters with the confidence that he can strike out anybody in any situation and has the numbers to prove it.
Adcock has fanned 78 batters in 59 1/3 innings this season for the University of Michigan and only Illinois hurler Cody Sedlock surpasses him in the Big Ten with 90 strikeouts. Though, Adcock (1.3 per inning) edges Sedlock (1.2) in strikeouts per inning.
The big left-hander from Kawkawlin, Michigan, was at it again Friday night (May 6) against Rutgers, striking out 11 in six innings for his sixth win of the season. It seems only natural that a strikeout pitcher comes from a town that starts with the letter "K" and has that same letter -- used to record strikeouts in scorebooks -- repeated in its name.
If ever there was an inning that exhibits what Adcock is all about, both good and not-so-good, it was the third inning against the Scarlet Knights.
Adcock got the leadoff hitter, Luke Bowerbank, to go down swinging. Then Rutgers got a double, before Adcock loaded the bases with two walks.
Walks are Adcock's bane. He also leads the Big Ten with 50 of them.
However, the aggressive junior reaches back for something extra when he gets into trouble and dominated the next two hitters to keep the game scoreless after three innings and strike out the side.
The No. 21 Wolverines exploded for seven runs in the fifth inning, and catcher Harrison Wenson crushed a grand slam in the seventh for a 14-1 victory.
However, Scarlet Knights cleanup hitter Mike Martinez was in a position to put his team ahead in that pivotal third inning, getting ahead with a 2-0 count and the sacks full. But Adcock quickly evened the count and then got Martinez on a called third strike fastball.
"I just threw strikes and made them try to hit the ball," said Adcock. "We play percentages. It's nine (fielders) against one (hitter)."
Adcock made it six consecutive strikes, getting John Jennings to go down swinging at a curveball to end the threat. The pitcher slapped his glove for joy and jogged to the dugout for high fives.
It was bear-down time, and Adcock was a bear.
"He can get strikeouts and weak contact when there's a threat," said coach Erik Bakich. "That's when he's at his best. He won a championship in high school (Bay City Western), and he's always been a winner. He's just one of those guys who can go to an internal level, and he knows when he needs to dial it up and laser it in.
"That's a unique skill, and there's no drill for it. It's like clutch hitting. That's something that he has between the ears and in the chest that allows him to make big-time pitches in big-time spots."
Adcock made the All-Big Ten Tournament team in 2015, helping the Wolverines to the championship and into the NCAA Tournament.
He got the win in the conference tournament final against Maryland, going 5 2/3 innings and allowing one run on two hits. He pitched well enough to win against Louisville in the NCAA tourney, giving up two runs over seven innings and striking out six, but didn't figure in the decision.
Adcock came through when it mattered most.
"You just can't let a situation get the best of you," said Adcock. "Coach (Bakich) preaches mental game stuff, and you get in spots, but you have to get out of it. I got in trouble with walks, and I just had to make pitches and let the defense make plays."
He mentioned the other jam he got into in the fifth inning, crediting first baseman Drew Lugbauer with fielding a one-hop shot and gunning down a runner trying to score from third base. That made it two outs with two on, but Rutgers literally stole a run on a trick play that resulted in R.J. Devish stealing home.
Attacking hitters also makes sense for Adcock because nobody in the Big Ten has a lower opponent batting average than him at .170. He also has yet to allow a homer and has a solid 2.88 ERA.
"You just have to trust your defense and throw strikes," said Adcock, repeating his mantra.
Adcock did that over his last three innings and allowed neither a run nor a walk.
Getting pitchers to cut down on walks is the age-old challenge for coaches, and when asked about the approach being taken with Adcock, Bakich took a deep breath before answering.
"There are a lot of books written on that," he said. "There are a lot of pitching coaches trying to figure it out.
"But when his command is on, he's as good as anyone in the country. When he gets in trouble, it's not because he's being hit, but because he'll walk a few people. But he's been better and more consistent the last few weeks."
Adcock throws a fastball, curve, cutter and changeup. He's gone away from the slider he threw the last two seasons, changing his grip to throw the cutter.
"He's got some of the best stuff in the country with a four-pitch mix," said Bakich. "Tonight, he was throwing the changeup, which he hasn't shown much in the last couple weeks. But he can be dominant -- especially when he's attacking the bottom of the strike zone."
Adcock said, "It's good to have that fourth pitch. You keep the hitters off balance and you can get soft contact and let the defense make easy plays if you have a changeup. Throw four pitches for strikes and you can definitely keep them off balance."
However, the fastball is what sets Adcock apart.
"He's in the 90-94 (mph) range," said Bakich. "That's certainly gotten better in his three years here. He came in a mid- to upper-80s pitcher who touched 90. Now he's evolved into a guy who sits in the low 90s and a little higher than that.
"I think in his future, he'll probably be a hard-throwing left-hander in the mid-90s."
Adcock was rated the third-best pitching prospect in the Big Ten for the June Major League Baseball draft by D1Baseball.com. He wasn't drafted out of high school but has developed under Wolverines pitching coach Sean Kenny and strength and conditioning coach Jason Cole.
He credited Cole with the improved velocity.
"It's learning to be loose," said Adcock, 6-0, 235 pounds. "You get all tight, and you start losing velo(city). Coach Cole has us all lifting, and everyone's working hard. We've seen a lot of velo increases with everybody. Like, Bryan Pall is throwing harder this year. The strength and conditioning coaches have gotten us bigger, stronger and faster."
Bryan Pall is one of six Wolverines with more than one strikeout per inning pitched, and Michigan leads the Big Ten with 371 strikeouts.
Adcock moved ahead of current Oakland A's starter Rich Hill and into sixth place on Michigan's career strikeout list by pushing his total to 234. Jim Burton, who went on to pitch for the Boston Red Sox, tops the list with 288 from 1969-71.
It's been quite a college career for Adcock, who was a 10-game winner in 2015 and has a three-year mark of 23-11. He tied Zach Putnam (2006-08), currently with the Chicago White Sox, for seventh in career victories at Michigan by beating Rutgers to improve to 6-3 this season.
Adcock is taking his place among the best pitchers a school rich in mound talent has ever produced.
• Offensive Onslaught Propels Michigan to Victory over Rutgers
