(The following is part two of the interview with Williamsport Crosscutters pitching coach Jim Gott featured in last week’s June 2 column. Gott enjoyed a 14-year major league career and served as the Philadelphia Phillies bullpen coach from 2018-2020. Gott shares his views on Tommy John surgery, pitch counts and his fling with Hollywood).
WW – What are your thoughts regarding the increasing number of pitchers undergoing Tommy John surgery?

Gott – You have scouting directors and organizations that say the one thing you can’t teach a pitcher is velocity. In my view that is the reason why. Major League clubs have put such a premium on velocity and that is very evident. We’ve all seen it. When I was coming up 30 years ago, if you threw in the low to mid 90s you were at the top of the game. There were just a few guys like Nolan Ryan leading the way who constantly threw 95+ who were the hardest throwers in the game.

Today, if you are a Major League reliever in the bullpen you are considered a soft-tosser if you aren’t reaching 95. I think that has gotten away from two issues. Number one is development. A young pitcher now believes velocity is their most important asset. This can put a player in a most compromising position as they are growing up. At younger ages the body is not acclimated to throwing and the stress and strain that is put on your arm.

Much attention is given to pitch count and innings pitched, but today you have weighted balls and weight training, which we didn’t have when we were growing up. We stayed healthier because we knew that Tommy John was a death sentence. Today, studies are done on what the recuperating rate is from your first Tommy John. About 85 to 90% of the people who have had Tommy John are able to reach the potential or more than they had before surgery. That doesn’t scare anybody off anymore. It’s no longer the death sentence it used to be.

Then there are pitchers that are looking at a second Tommy John surgery, which is so scary to me. I’m a father and a grandfather and I look at how important it is that we are developing men. Baseball is going to be a blip in their life, even if they have a 15–20-year career; they are going to be doing something other than baseball. Hopefully, they can learn some great skills about life that the game of baseball can teach them.
WW- Pitch counts seem to be ruling the game. How will you be dealing with them?

Gott- All the pitching coaches in the Draft League have spent time talking before the season began. We have to be able to get our pitchers through games. We are working with limited staff numbers in the early weeks of the season, so it is important we attack the strike zone and get quick outs.

For starting pitchers, the magic spot is between 30-35 pitches at the beginning of the game. Having them get stretched out is very important not only for them, but for the entire staff as well. If we have a situation where a pitcher reaches 30 pitches in the first inning and only has two outs, now we have to cover 8 1/3 innings with the bullpen and that kills your staff with the lack of off days.

We tell the pitchers 15 pitches an inning is the target. A reliever will have less, probably between 25-30 in a game. While that doesn’t seem like a big thing it definitely adds up over a season.”

(Note: A week into the 2021 season the MLB Draft League announced the league would not be playing extra inning games as a health and safety precaution. The league’s announcement stated, “The sole basis of this decision is to make sure that we don’t put any unnecessary stress on the arms of future stars.”)

The 2002 movie The Rookie, was based upon the true story of Jim Morris who debuted as a Major League pitcher at the age of 35. It starred actor Dennis Quaid playing the lead role of Morris. Gott was asked to work with Quaid preparing him for the film’s pitching scenes.
WW- What was your Hollywood moment like?

Gott- Dennis Quaid was a great guy and a good student. The first day I met him he asked me to come over to his palatial house in Brentwood. When I walked in, he was telling me he was a great fan. I said what are you saying to me, I am a big fan of yours. He had just gotten back from a yoga class, and he was inviting me to come with him to his next class. It was an invitation, by the way, that I turned down.

He took on the role of Jim Morris wonderfully. The Dodgers were great in allowing us to use their facilities to prepare Dennis for the role. I was able to share with him those big moments pitchers face. I told him the greatest thing of all for anybody that makes it to the Big Leagues, if you are a pitcher, is running or walking from the bullpen onto the mound.

That was a very important part of the movie and I’m glad we spent the time to focus on that because it was huge. He played that role very well and I think that made the movie believable from a baseball aspect.

“My worry was after working with me he would have to go see Doctor Jobe or Doctor Andrews, but he’s still healthy so it was all good,” Gott joked.