How a Tweak Helped Mariners’ George Kirby Shut Down Astros
George Kirby’s pinpoint control is his greatest asset on the mound, but the Seattle Mariners starter’s tendency to consistently pitch aggressively in and around the strike zone has sometimes been his biggest weakness.
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On Wednesday night against the Houston Astros, the hard-throwing Kirby made a significant adjustment. He leaned heavily on his offspeed pitches early and frequently, resulting in a standout performance that was crucial to the Mariners’ 2-1 victory.
After giving up five runs over six innings in his last two starts and four or more runs in three of his last four, Kirby limited Houston’s strong offense to just one run on six hits, issuing no walks and striking out eight batters.
“George is fantastic. I can’t say enough,” said manager Scott Servais postgame on Wednesday. “Tonight, he mixed his pitches early, using offspeed pitches right away – essential against a top-tier, fastball-hitting team like the Astros – and executed brilliantly.”
Kirby’s slider was his primary weapon, thrown a game-high 30 times and earning seven of his eight strikeouts. A small adjustment in his positioning on the mound helped him better locate his slider.
“I’m always trying to make the perfect pitch, and I feel like that hurts me sometimes,” Kirby explained. “Today, I shifted to the right side of the rubber, which I think really improved my slider, starting it more over the plate and letting it break from there.”
Kirby also effectively used his splitter and curveball throughout the game, throwing more offspeed pitches (52%) than fastballs. In the sixth inning, with runners on first and third and one out, Kirby doubled up on the splitter to strike out Alex Bregman, preventing the Astros from taking the lead after the Mariners tied the game in the bottom of the fifth.
“Those are huge moments,” Servais emphasized. “They are pivotal for young players, and George has the ability to deliver. He just needs to keep executing, which is exactly what he did tonight.”
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