Q & A with New D-backs Pitching Coach Brian Kaplan and Torey Lovullo

Kaplan and Lovullo answered a myriad of questions in a lengthy ZOOM session today. Here is the transcript to get to know the newest member of the D-backs staff.

Feb 23, 2023; Clearwater, FL, USA; Philadelphia Phillies assistant pitching coach/director of pitching development Brian Kaplan (93) during photo day at BayCare Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

As reported earlier today, the Arizona Diamondbacks have named Brian Kaplan as their pitching coach. Formerly an assistant pitching coach with the Philadelphia Phillies, as well as Director of Pitching development, Kaplan has a varied background. He was also the co-founder of Cressey Sports Performance in Florida.

We had the opportunity to interview both manager Torey Lovullo and Kaplan today. Lovullo described an intense vetting process and an interview process that took an entire day. There was a strong connection made.

"He just continued to hit every key point and overall was just nailing the interview process with the answers that I was hoping to hear," Lovullo said.

Kaplan met not only with the front office and Lovullo, but the rest of the coaching staff, the medical and strength staff, and the analytics team. He described his overall approach as follows:

"Some of the things that I want to bring here is an emphasis on health, an emphasis on performance and what it means to tie those things together. So having really strong relationships with the strength staff, the medical staff, being able to handle a lot of complex information, going back and forth from the analysts and trying to filter those things and simplify those things and relay them to the players in a digestible manner."

Q & A

To Torey Lovullo: What were you looking for in a pitching coach and what did you see in Kaplan?

A: "Being able to deliver the message the right way. I think there's a uniqueness in being able to address, talk to and connect with players. And he explained how important that was to him. On a given day, he will have a certain type of a conversation with, for example, a starting pitcher, knowing where he is in his five-day process."

"And I was very specific about some of the questions that I was asking on that five-day process because I think it outlined how you're able to talk to, communicate and when to understand the timing of when to and how to communicate with a player."

"He talked about performance. Just now he addressed that as well. It is about being able to key up that guy, get him on the mound and go out there and help him get outs. And today, that conversation about how you're going to do it may look different than tomorrow."

"We all know that every player is different and there's a getting to know process. There's a understanding of how to build trust, how to show care and go out there and gain that player's overall faith in you, that you're there with them and trying to help them get better every single day. Those were a few things that stuck out to me."

To Brian Kaplan: What have learned over the last three years about the day to day?

A: "I think my previous job was co-owner of a training facility in South Florida. So a lot of my work was in the off season, basically now, November through February. So the preparation of building an arsenal or giving guys a routine that Torey was alluding to, helping guys emphasize health and getting the best version of themselves out on the field, that was my main priority for a long time."

"Shifting to in-season, obviously things work a little bit differently, so you shift pretty drastically into compete mode. You can't lose sight of the work that you did in the offseason. You can't lose sight of some of the adjusting of the arsenal or maybe the game-planning you put together for a righty or lefty."

"But as the season progresses, you're shifting more into a compete mode. So I think it was that recognition of like, hey, I know there's some things that we want to work on or some things that we want to adjust, but ultimately we need to focus on the mentality that you need to go out and compete today and win the game today."

"So I think it was just learning that more delicate balance of development and competition and recognizing, things are obviously different in season."

To Kaplan: Can you explain more about how as pitching coach you coordinate with strength and conditioning?

A: "There's a lot of complex information in the game. Biomechanics is obviously an important piece that's becoming more and more a part of the game and understanding human movement and the recognition that."

"At some point in the year you're going to have 25, 30 [different pitchers]. All of them are a little bit different. They move a little differently. They're built a little bit differently. So mentality aside, you have to learn a little bit about what makes each guy unique."

"[Zac] Gallen is going to be put together a little bit differently than [Merrill] Kelly and Kelly is going to be put together differently than Justin [Martinez]. So having relationships with the strength and training staff is really important because they have firsthand knowledge of what makes each guy unique."

To Kaplan: What stood out to you about the players on this team back in the NLCS in 2023?

A: "To be honest, I don't think I paid any attention to the pitchers. I think I was probably a little too over-focused on the lineup out here. I do remember Ginkel kind of embarrassing us throughout the entire series, so that stands out."

To Kaplan: What excites you about getting to work with this group?

A: "A big piece of what I tried to do in Philly the last three years was help recreate the starter role and define it a little bit differently than the direction it's been going. I think we did a really good job of that with our rotation. And there were signs that we were building some really strong starters in the minor leagues."

"This staff has that, a lot of horses and starter depth. And you really can't say that about too many organizations in the game. So I'm really excited to get to work with the entire staff, but I feel lucky to have that amount of starters at our disposal and see the best way we can get them moving forward."

To Kaplan: How do you assess what happened with the D-backs pitching staff in 2024?

"I'm starting to look more into that as we're trying to prepare for what the offseason's going to look like and get our momentum. I think momentum into the season is important. I think bad luck, some other factors at play look like they got out of the gate a little injured, a little banged up."

"You don't always see what that does to the team then and there. There's a big snowball effect and a trickle effect to what that might look like to the bullpen later in the year. So I think it's really important that our guys are strong and healthy and get the momentum out of the gate in spring training at the beginning of the season so we can take some of that stress off the bullpen and make sure they're ready to go when it's end of the season time."

To Torey Lovullo: What's next?

A: "So the next steps are to name an assistant pitching coach, a bullpen coach, and then ultimately a third base infield coach. And we're going to probably prioritize it that way. We're very close on the next set of pitching guys. We have names and we have really good feel for what we're looking for in those guys."

"And then I'm just starting to vet some candidates. Infield and coaching infield is my baby. It's a thing that I spend a lot of time on. Well, I had spent a lot of time on with Tony Perezchica, and I will continue to do so with the next candidate."