Phillies’ Seranthony Domínguez focused on a bounce-back season and avoiding ‘trying to be too perfect’

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Seranthony Domínguez spent this offseason thinking about what he did when he was at his best. The Phillies right-handed reliever wasn’t as consistent as he wanted to be last year and was disappointed in his results. His strikeout rate dropped from 29.5% in 2022 to 21.4% in 2023, and his ERA rose from 3.00 to 3.78.

But there were flashes of his dominant self. So, Domínguez revisited those games. He realized that there were two common threads.

“I was at my best when I got ahead in the count,” he said, “and when I wasn’t trying to be too perfect.”

» READ MORE: Phillies’ Taijuan Walker won’t pitch for a few days due to right knee soreness

Domínguez was behind in the count in 56 at-bats last season. Hitters hit .214 against him in those at-bats but he also allowed 22 walks over that span. He didn’t allow a walk in the 139 at-bats when he was even counts or ahead in the count.

He has tried to make some changes to address that. Most of them have to do with his mindset. He found himself overthinking at times, particularly about his delivery. He is trying to manage his delivery less now, rather than thinking about it when he’s halfway down the mound.

“When you reach to turn a doorknob, are you thinking about how to turn a doorknob? Or do you just go do it?” said pitching coach Caleb Cotham. “If you start thinking too much, you make it harder. When you’re in motion, you’re moving fast. Let it rip. He’s being very clinical with what comes before that, so you’re aiming. Then you’re shooting your shot. Then you’re letting it rip.

“He’s focusing more on it early and not managing it as much through the whole delivery. So setting up well, get it going really well, and letting it rip. He might have been trying to manage his front side all the way down the mound. Or thinking a little too much in his delivery, too long in his delivery.”

Domínguez has had a good spring so far. He has yet to allow a hit or a walk in his two outings, but there are more predictive qualities Cotham is paying attention to. His velocity is where it needs to be, with his fastball in the 97-98 mph range. His pitch shapes are more consistent. He is physically in better shape this year. But above all, the pitching coach is impressed with Domínguez’s energy.

“He’s pitching free,” Cotham said. “This is as good as I’ve ever seen him, at this time, for sure. He’s pitching — he’s not being a robot. He’s not doing mechanical pitching. He’s flowing, there’s rhythm. And it’s not like he has been robotic — but there are two ends of the spectrum. You can pitch really free. Flow. Or you can think about how to do it a lot. And that doesn’t typically work out.”

Domínguez believes that staying ahead in the count will allow him to continue to pitch free. Cotham agrees.

» READ MORE: Griff McGarry hit rock bottom on the mound. But the Phillies think it can be a catalyst for change.

“If you’re freed up, and you’re pitching a little freer, at the end of the day, you don’t think you have to be as perfect,” Cotham said. “So you’re throwing to bigger parts of the plate. When he’s ahead in the count, he has the nastiest stuff in baseball. When he’s doing what he’s capable of doing, legitimately.

“Just getting 0-1 for him is very important. If gets 0-1, he very rarely walks them.”

In the meantime, Domínguez will continue to try to turn his brain off. It can be difficult for a perfectionist, but he knows overthinking won’t serve him.

“I’m trying to prepare physically, but also mentally,” he said. “My mindset in the game. I’m trying to focus on my pitches, instead. Control what you can control.”