Meet Your 2010 Draft Picks: Keith Couch
Keith Couch was drafted out of Adelphi College in the 13th round of the 2010 draft. He spent the season in Lowell where he posted a 4.39 ERA with a 1.32 WHIP. Couch discusses how he has changed since high school, his biggest challenge in Lowell last year, and what he has been working on this spring.
How do you think pitching at Adelphi contributed to your development?
It helped me grow. I was a little kid out of high school, so it just helped me mature, [and] grow into my body, and get
on the same level as everyone else.
How has your arsenal changed since high school?
I’m throwing harder. It’s the same as high school, I’ve just
grown up more.
What was your biggest challenge in Lowell last year?
Getting used to a full professional lineup, [and] having guys who
can all hit because it’s not like that in college. That’s the biggest thing I think
because one through nine you [have to] go all out instead of just easing up on the
seventh, eighth and ninth guys.
You might start the season in Greenville, which is obviously a much longer season than Lowell. How are you preparing?
I think its [going to] be better than it was in Lowell because in
Lowell, I had a month and a half after the draft, so I wasn’t throwing against batters in game situations, so its [going to] be easier if I go straight
through the year.
Do you let the catcher call the pitches, or are you more prone to doing that yourself?
No I like to do it myself. I like to call my own game. I just
know what I want to do, and how I want to set people up.
What did you notice about the hitters transitions as you went from college to professionally at Lowell?
They were just more consistent. You just [have to] bear down on
the lower half.
How do you change your approach, if at all, depending on if the batter is a left-handed hitter or a right-handed hitter.
For righties I attack with my sliders, and
with lefties I use my curveball and changeup more.
Do you have an out pitch?
My slider.
What do you think fans overlook or take for granted when it comes to the game?
How much time we put into it. Everyone thinks, ‘oh this guy
makes an error he sucks,’ and alright, he messed up one time. It’s a game where
you succeed when you do good 30% of the time… It’s just the amount of hours we
put in we’re here from 7. I’d like to see people hating on me come out
there and do this.
If you had to hit against yourself, what weaknesses would you take advantage of at this point?
The fact that I throw strikes; I’d swing early in the count. That’s the thing people started to realize last year because I would throw
strikes early. So first pitch swings.
What’s the biggest thing you’re working on this spring?
Changeup. Just making it better because I never used to throw
it, so I’m trying to make it better so I can throw it a lot.
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