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Ty is playoff bound
Baseball News, October 1, 2023
Padres clinch NL West
The San Diego Padres finished second in 2022, and began this season with a determination to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. They might finish the season with a worse record than they did last year, but the Padres realized their primary goal last night when they clinched the NL West Division championship...
One key component of the Padres' playoff push didn't sign with the club until spring training was well underway. Pitcher Ty Williams joined the club on March 15, and by the time the Padres broke camp, Williams was their #1 starter.
Williams pitched fairly well during the first half of the season, but kicked it up a notch after the All-Star break. Since mid-July, Ty has gone 8-4, and has knocked half a run off his ERA.
Although Williams throws a knuckleball and throws it well, he's careful to point out that he has other weapons in his arsenal. "My fastball isn't what you would call 'major league average,' but it's a legit pitch," he explains. "If a major league hitter knows it's coming, he'll hit it into next month. But if he guesses knuckleball and gets the fastball, he might not catch up to it." Williams' fastball might touch 83 MPH on a good day.
Williams also throws two varieties of knuckleball. "I have what I call my puff ball, which is the slow knuckler that Tim Wakefield threw. I also have a hard knuckler that's more like the knuckle curve Mike Mussina had."...
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