Orioles' Kevin Gausman: Expands arsenal of offspeed pitches

Gausman has worked to separate his slider and curveball so that he can throw both this season, Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun reports.

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The right-hander used a curveball as his primary offspeed pitch in 2015, but it unintentionally morphed into more of a slider last year. When Gausman takes the mound on Opening Day, he'll have both pitches in his repertoire after spending the winter refining the delivery of each weapon. "This offseason, I started messing with throwing a slider and getting back to the way I threw it in college and being really aggressive with it," Gausman said. "So I've been working on that, and I think the curveball is going to be a good pitch." Coming off a career campaign in which he posted a 3.61 ERA while managing an 8.7 K/9, the 26-year-old has widely been considered a breakout candidate during the 2017 draft season. With an expanded arsenal at his disposal, Gausman appears ready to fulfill the high expectations.