It’s 6:51 on a pleasant spring evening in North Carolina and Michael Kopech is struggling to find his “flow state.” His bullpen warm-up before a Triple-A start against the Norfolk Tide has been erratic to this point and Kopech needs a moment to gather himself.
Minutes earlier, his first pitch not only sailed over the head of Charlotte Knights catcher Alfredo Gonzalez, it cleared the temporary screen behind the bullpen.
Now, Gonzalez has become a goalie, backhanding one ball in the dirt, then exploding up and lunging for a Kopech fastball that sails way high and outside the zone.