The Padres have more quality eyes on their pitching staff than most teams.
In addition to pitching coach Darren Balsley and bullpen coach Darrel Akerfelds, the Padres have manager Bud Black, who won a World Series as the pitching coach with the Angels before joining the Padres in 2007.
And the three start from the same baseline rule -- fastball command.
"That's what they are all about around here, even from the minor leagues, fastball command," Padres right-handed starting candidate Anthony Bass said recently.
"They tweak a lot of stuff and offer some really good tips on a lot of stuff," said right-hander Casey Kelly.
"But the bottom line is always fastball command. If you can throw your fastball where you need to throw it, you've got a leg up. If not ..."
Almost every discussion on pitching with Black starts with fastball command.
"To be successful at this level, you have to be able to throw your fastball where you need to throw it."
Which leads to an unusual sameness with any Padres pitcher during a spring training interview. Invariably, the first comment out of the pitcher's mouth will be about fastball command.
That was the case with six Padres pitchers in a span of four days earlier this week.
Rotation candidates Bass, Clayton Richard, Edinson Volquez and Dustin Richards plus prospects Kelly and Joe Wieland all opened postgame remarks talking about fastball command.
"They preach what I like," said Volquez, "fastball command. I like what I see right now."
Bass noticeably improved his fastball command back in the minors last summer. And he's been working on it non-stop since. "My fastball command is night-and-day from last spring," said Bass. "I knew coming out of last season what they wanted me to do and I've been working on it. I took fastball command upon myself. Down-and-away, they love that. But in-and-out, up-and-down as well.
