Jameson Taillon always knew adding a usable changeup to his arsenal would help neutralize left-handed hitters.
The Chicago Cubs right-hander went into spring training last year looking to test the changeup he had focused on over the offseason and thought it would be a pitch worthy of using in the 2024 season.
But Taillon didn’t have a good feel for it as the season got underway and instead relied on a backdoor cutter in those spots versus lefties. He knew, though, he couldn’t expect his cutter to be as effective this year.
So the 33-year-old entered camp this year trying veteran pitcher Kevin Gausman’s grip because it should have worked well with his arm slot. Taillon had a hard time finding consistency, however, so early in camp he tweaked that grip to a kick-change variation. Yet he still wasn’t getting the reliability he wanted.
As spring training progressed, Taillon went back to the changeup grip he had used his entire career but incorporated the kick-change adjustment, creating a more natural feel. He ripped off some great ones in bullpen sessions with the type of spin and movement metrics he would want in games.
“I’ve just never had a serviceable changeup my whole career,” said Taillon, who takes a 2-3 record and 4.53 ERA into his start Tuesday night against the Miami Marlins. “I’ve never had a pitch that I know I could challenge lefties in the zone with or under the zone with. So I’ve always wanted it. I usually worked on something in spring, and then I always end up just kind of banging it, saying it’s not worth it, I’ve got to focus on getting better and dial in what I already do.
“Well, that’s what I did last year — just, I know what I do. This year, I actually saw some real potential and I was like, this is worth sticking out.”
A kick-change grip differs from a traditional grip by spiking the middle finger on the baseball. By raising that finger, it helps tilt — or kick — the rotation of the ball forward to produce more splitter-like vertical movement.
With his old grip, hitters could more easily pick up when Taillon went to a changeup because of how it stood out from throwing in a supinated position. Getting on the inside of the baseball meant some variance within his natural delivery and arm action compared with his other pitches. It often helped hitters in the past tee off on the changeup. They slugged .526 and had a .358 weighted on-base average (wOBA) with a double and three home runs versus the pitch in 2024.
The kick-change grip has eliminated that exposure to the hitter during Taillon’s delivery, making it more effective. The grip adjustment has created less active spin while adding nearly 5 inches of vertical drop to his changeup to help make it his second most valuable pitch in terms of run value (plus-2).
“Movement-wise, even if it’s the same movement in terms of velocity, horizontal and vertical, it’s going to look different out of hand,” pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. “And that’s the key point.”
Working through the cues of how to execute the release of the kick-change was an important step. For Taillon, thinking about ripping through the ball with his index and middle fingers helps set the axis he wants to generate on the pitch.
“His old changeup was such a traditional turn it over, work through the inside of the ball — and it would get good movement — but it looks so different compared to his other pitches,” Hottovy explained. “So it was just finding what cue is going to work the best for that grip, and ultimately for him it’s the feeling of throwing the ball with both of the fingers, even though one of them is spiked.”
Taillon likes when Cubs catchers Carson Kelly and Miguel Amaya challenge him by calling for the changeup in certain spots. Amaya went to it six times in Wednesday’s 3-1 loss to the Marlins, resulting in two called strikes and two foul balls.
“He was trying to look for that consistency in that pitch, and now we can throw it 0-0 to open — no matter what’s the count, I know he has that pitch ready to throw it,” Amaya said. “It’s a pretty good pitch that he added to his arsenal, and he can use it more.”
Although the changeup is Taillon’s fourth most-used pitch, it arguably has been one of his most effective and he already has doubled its use from a year ago. He has thrown it exclusively to lefties, who are hitting .133 against it with a .179 wOBA and just one extra-base hit in 62 pitches.
Taillon has surrendered seven home runs in his last two starts, including three solo home runs Wednesday. Six of those long balls came against left-handed hitters.
Finding the right balance on a pitch he’s working to feel second nature with the grip could play a big role in how the rest of Taillon’s season plays out, especially as teams continue to stack their lineups with left-handed hitters on his start days.
“I’ve given up a lot of homers on the fastball lately,” Taillon said after Wednesday’s outing, “so it’s understanding my changeup has gotten a lot better, my curveball doesn’t give up a ton of slug. So in big situations or to really good players, just understanding where the slug is, where my safe areas are.
“I do think I have the pitch package to do it and I have the awareness while I’m out there to do it. The last couple starts, I just haven’t done it.”
