March 14--REPORTING FROM TEMPE, Ariz. -- As if a 98-mph fastball and vicious slider aren't enough weapons for Garrett Richards, the Angels right-hander is working this spring on a changeup that he fully intends to use this season.
"Every day, it gets a little better," said Richards, who threw mostly fastballs and changeups in a four-inning, 52-pitch outing in a "B" game Sunday. "It's a pitch that gets people off the fastball and sets up everything. It's going to be another pitch that guys have to respect. What's wrong with that?"
Richards, who went 13-4 with a 2.61 earned-run average in 2014 and 15-12 with a 3.65 ERA in 2015, threw the changeup sparingly earlier in his career but did not throw it at all in the last two seasons.
He said he "picked the brains" of fellow starter Andrew Heaney over the winter and closer Huston Street this spring in order to find a grip he felt comfortable with and the proper mind-set for the pitch.
"I've always tried to throw a changeup but have never been able to grasp the concept of throwing one because I'm essentially a grab-it-and-throw-it kind of guy," said Richards, who is expected to start on opening day. "I found a grip I like, and I talked to guys to see what their thought process is when they throw it."
Richards, whose fastball hit 100 mph in a spring start last week, has been throwing the changeup at about 90 mph. His slider averages 87 mph, and his slow curve averages 79 mph.
"I don't know what the ideal velocity will be," Richards said of the changeup. "I'm trying to let the grip do the work. As long as it imitates a heater, and it's slower than the fastball, that's all I want."
Angels center fielder Mike Trout said an effective changeup would make Richards, already one of the better young right-handers in the game, even tougher to hit.
"Everything is hard with G-Rich -- you have to have those one or two pitches to keep the hitter honest," Trout said. "It puts something else in the hitter's mind. You have to worry about another pitch instead of just the fastball-slider. It will definitely help him in the long run."
Twitter: @MikeDiGiovanna
