Pitching Staff Keeps Pounding The Zone

George Horton refers to his newest assistant coach as "the pitching whisperer." Oregon players call him "a genius."

By whatever label, three weeks into this Oregon baseball season, there's no denying the impact first-year pitching coach Jason Dietrich has had on the staff.

Following Monday's win over UC Davis, the UO baseball team boasts a team ERA of 3.49. That ranks 70th nationally and is a modest improvement over the staff ERA of 3.74 last spring. But dig a little deeper, and some even more encouraging metrics emerge — Dietrich's pitchers are walking 2.11 batters per nine innings, seventh in the NCAA, and are striking out 4.57 hitters for every walk they issue, fourth in the NCAA.

As the Ducks look forward to the start of a four-game series with Santa Clara, on Thursday in PK Park at 6 p.m., they do so armed with a pitching staff abiding by Dietrich's edict to pound the strike zone.

"Some guys can shy away from that; it all depends on their personality," Dietrich said. "But I think we beat it into them enough — that's what we believe, and that's what our philosophy is going to be. We tell them, the guys that can do that are the ones that are going to be pitching.

"Strikes are good. Ground balls are good. Outs are good. That's what we're striving for."

Dietrich came to Oregon this offseason from Cal State Fullerton, which had one of the best strike-throwing staffs in the country. The Titans were third in the NCAA in strikeout-to-walk ratio in 2016 at 3.32, 59 places ahead of the Ducks (2.23). And CSF was seventh last spring in walks per nine innings (2.54), 91 places ahead of Oregon (3.59).

But through three weeks of this season, the Ducks have closed the gap — or even eliminated it completely. CSF is still pounding the zone in Dietrich's absence, currently ranking third nationally in walks per nine (1.67) and fifth in K:BB (4.33). But Oregon is only four spots behind in walks per nine, and is actually one spot higher in K:BB.

Dietrich has a soft-spoken demeanor, but those numbers speak volumes about Oregon's improvement under his guidance.

"We call him the pitching whisperer," said head coach George Horton, who also came to Eugene from Fullerton but had never before worked with Dietrich. "He does it in a very quiet and unassuming way. There's a reason we hired him, and he's done a tremendous job with our staff so far."

Dietrich's prize pupil so far has been Oregon's Friday night starter, junior left-hander David Peterson. A year ago Peterson struck out 61 and walked 30, a ratio of barely 2:1. Through three starts this spring — admittedly a small sample size — Peterson leads the Pac-12 and is 18th nationally with a 13:1 ratio — 26 strikeouts and two walks.

Last week against Mississippi State, Peterson struck out 17 and walked none. He harnessed his electric stuff to avoid walking any batters, without sacrificing the ability to pile up punchouts.

"On that 0-2, 1-2 pitch when you're ahead, you can get that ball down in the dirt, or up in the zone with the fastball," UO catcher Tim Susnara said. "I commend them because they're working their tails off, and it's paying off, as you can tell."

The Ducks spent the first two weeks of the season on the road. They returned home last week to spacious PK Park, and remain at home this week to face Santa Clara.

At home, the UO staff can be even more confident pitching to contact.

"You just can't be afraid," Peterson said. "You have to trust your defense. If you can limit walks and trust the defense, things are going to go a lot better."

Peterson isn't the only veteran throwing more strikes so far this spring. Neither Cooper Stiles, Parker Kelly nor Connor Zwetsch has allowed a walk so far. A year ago, those three plus fellow staff veteran Isaiah Carranza combined for 47 strikeouts and 24 walks; so far this spring, that quartet has 17 strikeouts with one walk.

And Oregon's newcomers have gotten the message as well. Closer Kenyon Yovan and setup men Ryne Nelson and James Acuna — all true freshmen — have combined for 19 strikeouts with two walks. The trio has yet to allow a run, and is 2-0 with Yovan's three saves.

They were all talented high school players, obviously. But they've all progressed under Dietrich's tutelage since the fall.

"He just gets through to us in every which way," Yovan said. "He does wonders for us. The difference between us the first day we showed up to now is remarkable. Everyone's a completely different pitcher — mentally, physically, everything."

Oregon's pitchers say Dietrich's attention to detail is unparalleled, whether in a midweek "touch-feel" session or on gameday. And Horton, who sits next to Dietrich in the dugout, can attest to how much the Ducks' new pitching coach quietly seethes after each walk his staff issues — each rare walk, at least through three weeks.