After a return to the basics, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Ricky Karcher on brink of majors
GOODYEAR, Ariz. – After a rough season at High-A Dayton in 2021, Ricky Karcher decided he wanted to return to square one.
Karcher, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound pitcher, had more walks (30) than strikeouts (29) in 19 1/3 innings at Dayton. It was his first season after he recovered from Tommy John surgery and his first season in the bullpen.
At the end of the year, he took two months off from baseball. He went to a gym in his hometown, Saline, Michigan, and focused on the weight room. When he picked up baseballs again, he wasn’t on the mound. Like he did as a kid, he pitched into a bucket from a flatground distance.
Reds spring trainingWhat are the Reds' options in center field as Nick Senzel recovers?
Reds spring training'He can really pitch': Reds prospect Andrew Abbott sticking to his strengths
Reds spring trainingHow Nick Lodolo's rookie season made him a better pitcher
No radar gun. No TrackMan to collect pitch data. No counting the number of balls he threw. Just the basics.
“Everyone’s first year after (Tommy John surgery), there is a learning curve there because you are here at the complex and you are kind of sheltered,” said the 25-year-old Karcher. “You have everyone looking out for you. I think that’s important, but then you go off that first season and you have to figure things out and be able to adapt. Was I worried about my future, dude? Maybe to an extent.”
Karcher, who was added to the Cincinnati Reds’ 40-man roster in November, has the look of a potential closer when he puts it all together. His fastball is sitting 96-98 mph this spring. He possesses a power slider he throws as much as his fastball. He adds a changeup as a third pitch.
Walks have been an issue throughout his career, compiling a 3.65 ERA in 52 appearances at Double-A and Triple-A last year with 88 strikeouts and 40 walks in 56 2/3 innings. Things clicked for him at the end of the season in Triple-A when he surrendered two earned runs in his last 14 innings (1.23 ERA) with 21 strikeouts, six walks and four saves.
Reds spring trainingSpring training observations: Prospects lead the way in Reds' 10-run inning
Reds spring training WilliamsWilliams: What will it take for Cincinnati Reds fans to forgive the Castellinis?
“Getting more work, more confidence, putting those good outings together, that’s when it is easy,” Karcher said. “Maybe getting in those high-leverage situations. Once I established myself in that role, I think that might have also played into that. Going out there and being as competitive as I can be, that’s when I tend to perform the best. When the game is on the line, that’s what I love to do.”
Karcher has a personality suited for late-inning situations. He’s laid back. He cracks up his teammates with his personality. When he was in the outfield during batting practice last week, he waved at fly balls that soared over the fence.
He describes himself as a kid. One of his favorite moments in camp was taking a headshot for PlayStation’s MLB: The Show video game because he’s played it since he was 10.
“He’s so funny,” said Matt McLain, who was teammates with Karcher in Double-A. “He’s honestly just himself and he’s hilarious. He doesn’t necessarily try to make jokes, he’s just funny. One of those naturally funny guys where you’re like, ‘dude, what?’ And cracking up every single time he does something.”
Karcher was a 13th-round pick out of Walters State Community College in 2017. Initially a starting pitcher, he could touch the mid-to-upper 90s, but his velocity didn’t jump until he switched to the bullpen after Tommy John surgery.
He credits Reds pitching coordinator Casey Weather, then the organization’s rehab coordinator, for writing his throwing program after surgery. Then Kyle Boddy, the former director of pitching, encouraged Karcher to throw his slider more often, a pitch he struggled to command in his first couple of seasons in pro ball.
“(Boddy) really pushed throwing your slider even more than your fastball,” Karcher said. “I adopted that philosophy and saw some success with it. It’s kind of counterintuitive, right? You throw super hard, you’re probably going to throw more fastballs. He flipped the script and said, ‘if you have a good fastball, throw the slider and the fastball plays up even more.’ I’ve had success with it.”
Karcher used to be more obsessive about spin rates and other analytical data, but his return to the basics after the 2021 season meant keeping that out of his mind.
“Maybe that helped me out,” Karcher said. “Maybe that’s what I needed. I don’t know. It’s hard to put myself back in that mindset. Just having fun and being competitive, that’s where I’m at now.”
In terms of pure stuff, Karcher rates near the top of the list in Reds camp. McLain remembers seeing a changeup from him in a live batting practice session earlier this spring and thinking, “where did that come from?”
“I want to be on that side with those dudes,” Karcher said while looking toward the side of the clubhouse with most of the Major League regulars, “winning games regardless of my role. I want to be in the big leagues and help these guys win.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ricky Karcher, Cincinnati Reds pitching prospect, on brink of MLB
