Hedges' approach with pitching staff building new levels of confidence

CLEARWATER, Fla. -- There's a lot riding on these Pirates arms, and 2023 is a critical year for a lot of them. That's one of the reasons why Austin Hedges was signed over the winter.

Hedges came to Pittsburgh with a great reputation of establishing glowing relationships with his pitching staff. Ben Cherington, Derek Shelton and Co. decided adding that kind of guy to the clubhouse, to aid in the growth of the pitchers, was essential both in the short and long term.

"I think the biggest thing is you hear about how catchers are going to dive in, how they’re going to do it. He lives it," Shelton said of Hedges Friday at BayCare Ballpark. "He started talking about it when we started talking about signing him. He talked about it with our pitching group. Just his whole interaction."

In order for the Pirates to be successful in their rebuild, they need as many of these pitchers -- whether they're part of the big-league rotation now or possibly in the future -- to establish themselves as long-term options for the club. While a lot of focus tends to lean toward the prospects, and for good reason, the Pirates really need guys such as Roansy Contreras, Mitch Keller and JT Brubaker to take another step forward in 2023.

That's why it's encouraging that all three have both had promising starts in Grapefruit League action, including Brubaker's third spring outing the 10-4 loss to the Phillies at BayCare Ballpark on Friday. Brubaker walked away with two earned runs in three-plus innings, but both runs came after Brubaker started the fourth inning with a well-earned walk by Nick Castellanos, and then Darick Hall hit a ball that the strong Clearwater wind carried out just beyond the fence in left field. Three impressive shutout innings quickly turned into a mediocre line in the box score.

What better exemplified Brubaker's day was racking up six strikeouts, giving him 15 in only eight innings. Brubaker's pitching with newfound confidence, and even though Hedges wasn't the one catching him on this day, Hedges' presence as a teammate has only made Brubaker even more confident.

"He's doing an amazing job," Brubaker told me. "Just give him the reins, let him call it, and let's just go. It's been awesome, an easy transition. He's easy to work with. He's a great dude behind the plate, and he brings energy behind the plate too. Everything he does just builds confidence for the pitcher on the mound."

In my conversation with Brubaker about Hedges, it almost felt unfair because he just couldn't stop talking about the impact Hedges has made here. Typically, you want to talk to players about themselves, what they're working on, etc. But, when I asked about Hedges, the conversation carried on and on. The glowing remarks really tell the tale of just how crucial the pitcher-catcher relationship is. And, when you have a good one on hand, it's something worth the excitement.

"It's a relationship where you have to be able to basically read each other's minds," Brubaker told me. "You could make the slightest movement, little blink or whatever, and it's like a telepathic signal. It's just like, bam, okay, we're on the same page. You're basically thinking along with him, and they're thinking along with you. It's a relationship that you guys have to be in tune with each other, spend time together, get to know each other, play catch together. It's so much and it's a lot more definitely on the catcher because they have 12 other pitchers. But, it's definitely that type of relationship where words don't have to be said to be on the same page."

But, how does someone with Hedges' reputation actually go about developing and nurturing those relationships? As Brubaker said, a catcher has to develop unique relationships with a lot of different pitchers, and each one has their own repertoire, their own way of working on the mound and their own personalities.

The latter is actually where Hedges first looks to get to know a specific pitcher. He can study film and reports all day to learn a pitcher's arsenal, his tendencies, and it only takes a couple bullpen sessions to see how the pitches play in live action. But, to really get in sync with a pitcher, it's gotta go beyond what happens between the rubber and home plate.

"It all starts in the clubhouse and off the field," Hedges told me. "I think the most important thing for me is getting to know the human. When I know how this human being works -- what motivates them, what bothers them, just really who they are -- I try and take that into account first. Then, I think it really identifies a lot of things on the mound. 

"Everybody in this room is all super talented. But, what they're going through on that mound is going to be unique to them. There are gonna be obviously a lot of similarities, but there's a lot of uniqueness to everybody. So I take that very seriously. And it's probably my main priority."

A good example of how getting to know the person first pays off happened in Hedges' last start when he caught Vince Velasquez in the Pirates' 7-4 loss at Ed Smith Stadium on Wednesday. Until that point, Hedges hadn't caught Velasquez this spring, even though there's a great chance that'll happen quite often once the games matter. And, in an outing in which Velasquez looked really sharp through three shutout innings, it was easy for both of them to work together because Hedges already knew Velasquez on a personal level.

"Luckily, for me, I've known Vince for a long time, so at least I know the human," Hedges told me. "I've been really looking forward to catching him because I know him so well, and I feel like I understand him. ... So, that's actually one of the easier ones to do, because earning the stuff in pictures is significantly easier than learning the people. So, I think there was a bit of an advantage there with knowing him that well. Catching him and actually seeing what stuff plays like in the game allows us to communicate even deeper, and understand what we're going to try and do this season."

Shelton knew coming into camp that Hedges was going to earn rave reviews from his pitching staff. That's what he was brought here for. But, it's something else to see it in action. And, it's given Shelton an opportunity to learn things about Hedges that might have surprised him along the way.

"The other thing that really stands out to me is his ability to admit when he’s wrong," Shelton said. "What I mean by that is, ‘OK, this was my thought going into it.' Then he and Oscar (Marin), or he and (Justin Meccage) will have a conversation. I think that’s more him getting to learn our pitchers and sometimes having conviction of saying, ‘OK, we can do this.’ Then when it doesn’t play out, his openness to be like, ‘Alright, I need to think about this differently.’ I think that’s rare for guys these days of his willingness to say, ‘Alright, I need to think about another path.’ That’s really good, and that’s gonna make us better."

Better is undoubtedly what the Pirates need. Helping the trio of Contreras, Keller and Brubaker take another step forward would be a sorely needed development, and make things a whole heck of a lot easier down the road.

MORE FROM BAYCARE BALLPARK

• After Brubaker's day was done, the day quickly went south for Pittsburgh, despite Brubaker leaving with a 3-2 lead. 

Chase De Jong relieved Brubaker after Hall's two-run homer, then managed to give up a two-run double and two-run home run before he finished an inning of work. Caleb Smith was able to pitch 2 2/3 innings in relief, but his days started off with solo homers by Hall and Scott Kingery to lead off the fifth, putting the Pirates in an 8-3 hole. 

Then, after Rodolfo Castro cut the lead to 8-4 with an RBI double in the seventh, Tyler Chatwood served up two solo home runs in the eighth inning, putting the game well out of reach.

• Before the day turned ugly, Oneil Cruz made an immediate impact by taking Zack Wheeler deep on the very first pitch of the game.

Yeah, the word, "freak," started making its way around the press box after that. Cruz finished the day 2 for 4 with the homer and a double. Not too shabby.

• Travis Swaggerty joined the fun with a two-run homer in the second inning -- also off Wheeler -- giving Pittsburgh an early 3-0 lead. Swaggerty is one of many outfielders fighting for an Opening Day roster spot, and he really likes where he's at right now.

"Everyday is kind of maintenance for me. Just cleaning little things up with my path and timing and everything," Swaggerty said. "It comes with reps; the more reps I get, the more comfortable I feel and I’m sure that goes with everybody in here. I’m just trying to maximize my opportunities every day. ... I’ll keep playing every day and just keep trying my best."

• 14 total runs scored in this one, and the game lasted only 2:34. Praise be to the pitch clock.