Last season, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Michael Lorenzen entered spring training wanting to throw 103 mph. He came out of the gate hitting 99 mph regularly. And then during the 2020 regular season, Lorenzen felt that he had the worst stretch of his career.
As he tries to claim the open spot in the 2021 starting rotation, Lorenzen showed in his spring debut that he’s taking a different approach. Instead of throwing as hard as he could against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, Lorenzen’s fastball sat in the low 90s, and he focused on developing his breaking pitches.
“I’m not ready to tap into a competitive mentality yet,” Lorenzen said.