He started with a win on opening day and the season has only gotten better for former Warren County resident Bryan Morris.
After picking up a victory a week ago against Baltimore, Morris is now 4-0 in his third season with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The hard throwing right-hander played at Motlow College on his way to the Major Leagues and has settled into his role as a reliable middle reliever in the Pittsburgh bullpen.
“My two-seam fastball is my primary pitch,” said Morris of his fastball, which is regularly clocked between 94 and 97 mph. “I throw a slider with it as my main complementary pitch and I also work in a curve.”
Morris admits much of his success has to do with God-given talent because he says most people aren’t going to throw 97 mph no matter how hard they work. But he says physical and mental preparation play a huge role in the Major Leagues.
“It’s an everyday thing,” said Morris. “Most people don’t realize what it takes to perform at this level. I do a lot of throwing and work on my mechanics and pick-off move. I also do a lot of stretching and shoulder exercises. The drills really aren’t much different than the youth leagues. The infielders take grounders everyday. The outfielders work on reading the ball off the bat.”
Morris, 27, is off to a 4-0 start in 19 appearances as of Memorial Day. He has a 3.20 ERA. Last year, he made 55 appearances and finished with a 5-7 record and 3.46 ERA.
When asked about the toughest batter he has faced, Morris admitted he hasn’t had the opportunity to pitch against every Major Leaguer. But he says St. Louis slugger Matt Holliday has been a difficult out for him.
“Every time I have faced him we have had some good battles and he’s managed to win them,” said Morris. “But I’ve been working on some things and how to approach him and the last time I faced him I got him out.”
When asked about the best player in baseball, Morris picked one of his own teammates, CF Andrew McCutchen, who is batting .309 with 4 HR, 23 RBI and 7 stolen bases.
“I’m one of the many people who think Andrew McCutchen is the best player in baseball,” said Morris. “After that I’d probably have to go with Pedro Alvarez. He has a lot of power and it’s impressive the things he can do with a bat.”
As for the grind of playing a 162-game baseball schedule, Morris said it takes a toll. He said it’s customary for players to have to be at the clubhouse at 2 p.m. for a 7 p.m. game. Warm-ups and batting practice are usually over by around 5:30 p.m.
When asked about the hardest part of his job, Morris said it’s being mentally ready to play even when he might not be called on to take the mound.
“There are always situations in a game where I think it would be a good time for me to enter,” said Morris. “There are situations where I get called to warm up and I think I might be going in and then I have to sit back down. It’s tough because I always want to go in the game, but you never want your pitcher to have to leave in the middle of an inning. That’s usually not a good sign. So that’s the hardest thing, never knowing when I’m going to be used.”
It’s been somewhat of a disappointing year thus far for the 23-27 Pirates, a team many analysts picked to reach the World Series. But Morris has certainly done his part with four of the team’s 23 wins in what appears to be a blossoming pro career.