Yankees reliever has his changeup discussed by A's DH Brent Rooker

Jason Burke | Oct 19, 2024

Oct 17, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Tommy Kahnle (41) throws during the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians in game 3 of the American League Championship Series at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images / Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

During Game 4 of the American League Championship Series, Foul Territory assembled a number of MLB players to discuss the game that was going on, as well as to provide some of their own insights on what it's like to face those guys. One of the guys they chatted about was New York Yankees reliever Tommy Kahnle, who worked a scoreless ninth inning while relying heavily on his changeup.

The talking point that was brought up was how a guy that throws his changeup so often can be so effective. Why aren't hitters just sitting on the changeup since he throws it "90% of the time"?

Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinny Pasquantino said, "It's mental f**kery. He's gonna throw me the heater. He has to!"

A's closer Mason Miller chimed in, "This is just music to a pitcher's ears."

Host Scott Braun then asked the hitters on the feed why they care if he throws a fastball one time and they look dumb, but if they're geared up for the changeup, then they should be able to have more success.

Pasquantino said, "You don't want to miss the heater" while Brent Rooker added, 'You want to hit the fastball. He throws his changeup 90% of the time for a reason, because it's a really good pitch. So if he throws his less good pitch once, I want to hit that one."

During the regular season this year, Kahnle threw the changeup 73% of the time, which is only a touch lower than he tossed it in 2023 when he used it 75% of the time. While the overall thought process doesn't change a whole lot, the difference between a one in five chance of seeing a heater, and a one in ten chance the way they were phrasing it is seemingly a big difference.

In six appearances this postseason, Kahnle is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in seven innings of work. On Friday night, all 18 pitches he threw were changeups.