Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher John Means didn’t have the best outing in his 2020 debut, but he did show everyone something new.
One of the bigger storylines heading into the 2020 season for the Baltimore Orioles involves finding out a bit more about exactly what kind of pitcher they have in John Means.
The former West Virginia Mountaineer emerged as the ace of the Orioles staff last season, earning himself a trip to the 2019 All-Star game and finishing second in American League Rookie of the Year voting after posting a 12-11 record and 3.60 ERA across 31 outings (27 starts).
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While some believe Means is a prime candidate to regress in 2020 (4.41 FIP/5.48 xFIP), others believe the second-year lefty can take a step forward this season after a new offseason training regiment and working on improving his pitch repertoire to better compliment his changeup, which is already one of the top offspeed pitches in all of baseball.
Originally named the Opening Day starter for the Baltimore Orioles, Means was scratched from his start due to arm fatigue and had to wait until Thursday night to make his season debut in what was supposed to be a contest against the Miami Marlins.
However, due to the recent COVID-19 outbreak among the Marlins clubhouse, Major League Baseball allowed the New York Yankees and Orioles to play a two-game set at Camden Yards this week, forcing Means to make his first start of the year against a familiar lineup in the Bronx Bombers.
The night wasn’t scheduled to be a long one for John Means, but a five-run first inning for New York, including a grand slam off Means, quickly zapped away any celebratory feelings of seeing the lefty back on the mound.
But there was one eye-opening aspect of his start that impressed Orioles fans. Means showcased a fastball that averaged 95.2 mph against New York and topped out at 96.5 mph. That’s nearly 4 mph faster than the average fastball thrown by Means last season at 91.7 mph.
His first start was a bit erratic, giving up five earned runs on two hits and walk across 2.1 innings, but the new fastball is something to watch closely as the season progresses.
It also wasn’t just his fastball that had a little something extra behind it on Thursday night. His changeup clocked in at an average of 84 mph, a bump from his 81 mph changeup in 2019 that held hitters to a .207 average against and produced a 25% whiff rate.
If the added velocity is sustainable for John Means, calling him a “crafty lefty” may not be an option anymore. The results weren’t there for his first start, but it was a quick outing after a four-month shutdown and extended absence after a bout of “dead arm.”
The arm is clearly the opposite of dead now and Baltimore Orioles fans should be anxiously awaiting his next start to see how Means can continue to improve.