We know the stereotype of the "old school" type, wedded to the way things were done when he was younger and getting angrier and angrier that things are changing, and knowing that all change is bad. One of the best compliments I can give Brent Strom is that despite being 73 years old, he is not an old school type. He has remained throughout his career at the cutting edge of pitching.
Strom announced immediately after the Game 6 loss that he would not be returning as the Astros major league pitching coach in 2021, The loss of Strom is a significant blow to the 2022 Astros and beyond. Yet Strom is at the head of a strong system of pitching development in the Astros organization, a broad philosophy of pitching that is shared by the front office, the player development system, and Strom's likely successors. The Astros remain well positioned ton continue to develop starting pitching into the future.
Strom has served as the Astros pitching coach since 2014, working for 3 different managers. And the hallmark of those staffs has been the stark improvement of many of the pitchers who Strom has tutored in that role.
Strom's biggest success stories are Charlie Morton and Gerrit Cole, both of whom spent most of their early careers with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates and their pitching coach Ray Searage were highly regarded for their pitching development in the first half of the 2010s, and the Pirates had a clear formula--to "pound [your] hard and heavy sinker down and in to get ground balls and break bats" and to mix in occasional breaking balls when ahead in the count.
The approach worked well for the Pirates, but batters adjusted, developing swings that allowed them to lift balls thrown low in the strike zone and hit them hard and into the seats. The flyball revolution killed the Pirates style.
But Brent Strom was one step ahead of the fly ball. He wanted pitchers who would use the whole strike zone, throwing 4 seam fastballs at the top of the zone and more "hammer" breaking balls that started at the top of the zone and dropped to the bottom. These pitches came out of the same "tunnel," which meant it would take longer for batters to recognize whether they were facing a fastball or a curveball. And since batters have the most difficulty with breaking pitches, pitchers should throw more of them.
What was the goal of that philosophy? Let Morton explain it:
As soon as I got here, they wanted me to throw a lot more two-seamers down and away to righties," Morton says. "I was like, 'Hmm, I want to go in on righties -- that's what works for me. You know, get 'em to hit the ball on the ground.' They were like, 'Well, actually...we'd like to avoid the ball being in put in play altogether.'
Batters can't hit the ball far if they can't hit the ball. Strike them out and they won't do any damage. Morton went from a pitcher who struck out 6.3 batters per nine innings in his first 8 big league season (7 of which were spent in Pittsburgh) to a pitcher who struck out 10.6 per nine innings. His ERA went from 4.54 in the first half of his career.
Gerrit Cole came to the majors as one of the game's most talented pitching prospects. He was twice drafted in the first round--and was first overall in the 2011 draft. Cole was very good for the Pirates, striking out 8.4 batters per nine and posting a 3.50 ERA. But since coming under Brent Strom's tutelage, Cole has increased his strikeouts to 12.7 per nine innings and reduced his ERA to 2.85. He's received Cy Young votes in his first three seasons after Strom help adjust his pitching philosophy, and he'll receive votes again this year.
But batters adjust and pitchers need to adjust ahead of them. This season, the Astros adjusted by throwing more sliders. Lance McCullers, a man known for throwing curve balls, developed a slider this off-season and it became his best pitch. Luis Garcia emerged as a new rotation mainstay thanks to developing a horizontal breaking pitch that seems in between a cutter and a slider, but is death on right handed hitters.
One of the stars of the Astros playoff run was mid-season acquisition Phil Maton. In Houston, Maton has not only relied more on his slider than in Cleveland, but he has reshaped that pitch. Maton has added "three inches of sweep to his slider" under the tutelage of Brent Strom. Even in his last days as a major league pitching coach, Brent Strom was at the cutting edge of pitching, developing new adjustments for his pitchers to help them get batters out.
Strom's success as the Astros pitching coach is not a story like a movie, of an individual outwitting others in his field. Instead, Strom sits atop of a system of pitcher development that is unified philosophically across the Astros organization.
Jake Kaplan detailed this system in great detail in this 2019 article headlined "Inside the Astros' cutting-edge approach to minor league pitching development." The article describes how the Astros use high speed cameras and wearable technology to track data on each of their pitchers, to make adjustments quickly to pitch grips and arm slots. The Astros create an individual development plan that they share with each pitcher, focusing on what that pitcher needs to improve upon and the metrics they will use to judge that improvement.
At the center of this development plan is Brent Strom. Kaplan writes:
Brent Strom’s influence on the Astros extends far beyond the dozens of pitchers he’s worked with in Houston over the last six seasons.
The septuagenarian pitching coach with seemingly boundless energy sets the tone for the entire organization’s pitching program. His philosophies about deliveries and his emphasis on four-seamers up and breaking balls down are imparted throughout the system.
The Astros minor league pitching coaches mirror Strom's energy and have absorbed his philosophies on pitching. They marry his quest for innovation in pitching methods with expertise on data and technology that are the hallmarks of the Astros pitching philosophy.
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| Photo by Jake Kaplan. Used with permission |
This pitching development system of the Astros--steeped in the quest for new edges in pitching that flows from Strom's philosophies--give us fans reason to believe that the Astros pitchers are in good hands into the future.
Kaplan writes that:
With their minor-league pitching coaches, the Astros have essentially a small army of mini Stroms to spread his ideology from rookie ball to Triple A. Like Strom, these coaches are forward-thinking, open-minded and have a healthy appetite for new information.
In discussing with the press his decision to step down, Strom touted the qualities of the team's assistant pitching coach Josh Miller and minor league pitching coordinator Bill Murphy.
“I really think this organization’s in a really good position with these two young pitching coaches that we have, and I’m sure had I stayed there would be teams coming after these two guys. I think this organization deserves these two young guys, Murphy and Miller, to stay."
Miller and Murphy have both worked their way up through the Astros minor league system, steeped in the pitching philosophies of Brent Strom. Miller first came to the Astros in 2013 as a minor league pitching coach and has worked his way up the ranks since then, It's a similar story for Miller, who arrived in 2016.
There is no doubt that the Astros would be better off with Brent Strom as the pitching coach next season. But there is every reason to believe that Astros ability to develop pitchers will continue. The Astros had a strong rotation this year of mostly home grown prospects in Framber Valdez, Luis Garcia, Jose Urquidy, and Cristian Javier. Each of them were tutored by Miller and Murphy through their rise through the Astros minor league system. The pitching development system for the Astros is strong.
In discussing his decision with reporters, Strom said that "I need to enjoy my life a little bit. I haven't had a summer in a long time." He said he "may just go lie on a beach in Mexico." But he did not retire. He said "there may be another opportunity for me." I'm going to hope that opportunity is as some type of consultant to the Astros and their pitching coaches, both at the major league and minor league levels.
Strom has always been at the cutting edge of pitching, despite being at an age where he wants to slow down and "have a summer." But the Astros can still learn from him.
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