The start of the 2023 season has been a revelation for Anthony DeSclafani.
After a stellar 2021 campaign for the Giants, he signed a three-year, $36 million deal. Last season was a nightmare. He pitched just five games, posting a 6.63 ERA, missing the majority of the season with a fractured right fibula.
But he’s back with a vengeance this season, posting a 2.13 ERA over his first six starts and shutting out the Houston Astros on Tuesday in an eight-inning, three-hit performance.
Mike Krukow joined Murph and Mac on Wednesday to discuss why he’s had such an astounding resurgence. Listen below:
Krukow broke down DeSclafani’s sterling start, pointing to one thing in particular:
“Command. Command with him is everything,” Krukow said. “What he does so well is corner pitch with all of his pitches. There aren’t many guys who can do that. When he’s off, he’ll make mistake out over the middle of the plate. When he’s on, he’ll carve. He’ll get out on the corners with cut, with two-seam movement. He can backdoor, front door both sides of the plate. And he can elevate. He can go knee high.”
The Giants broadcaster said that a lot of pitchers don’t have the knowledge DeSclafani has in how hard it is to hit pitches at different eye levels and locations.
If a pitcher has command of his fastball and can hit all four corners of the plate, Krukow said all those pitchers are different. He then offered some incredibly high praise for DeSclafani, likening his control to Curt Schilling.
“And if you have two different grips, the four-seam and the two-seam, that’s eight different pitches if you understand how to do it,” Krukow said. “The best I ever saw in doing it was Curt Schilling. He could pitch with just the fastball and he could confuse guys. And that’s rare.
Well DeSclafani, he’s one of the guys who can do that. Not only that, but he can do it with the cutter and the fastball. He can pitch on both sides of the plate, at the knees and at the belt and do it effectively. That’s really what he brings.”
Oh, and Krukow still had some thoughts on former Giant, Mauricio Dubón. He commended DeSclafani while adding a note that he probably enjoyed striking out his former teammate.
“He picked apart a very good hitting lineup,” Krukow said. “He made Mauricio Dubón look like he wasn’t ready to play in the big leagues. I think he was highly motivated to get him out last night. An example of a guy who can throw darts versus a guy who has weakness in his swing. He can find that weakness and he can exploit it. And that’s exactly what he does when he’s doing his thing and he was doing his thing last night.”
DeSclafani’s 2.13 ERA is currently 11th in the majors and sixth in the National League. His 0.82 WHIP? That ranks fifth in MLB and second in the NL, behind only Clayton Kershaw.
