Tides thriving with aggressive pitching

NORFOLK

Maybe it's because Norfolk pitching coach Mike Griffin has seen this before. Perhaps he's more interested in the finer details - the changeup that didn't tumble far enough or the fastball that was too high in the strike zone. Whatever the reason for Griffin's casual reaction to the Tides' pitching performance this season, his enthusiasm remains muted.

"I don't know if it is a surprise," said Griffin, who held the same position at Double-A Bowie last season. "But it's nice to see."

For Norfolk manager Gary Allenson, it's been an absolute delight.

And although the Tides lost 4-1 to Durham on Saturday night, fell out of first place and watched their nine-game winning streak end, they still received a strong performance from starter David Pauley. Before being pulled with one out in the seventh inning, Pauley yielded three runs - one of which was added to his stat line after reliever Bob McCrory served up a home run to Elliot Johnson.

Before Saturday's game, the Tides' team ERA had dipped to 2.35, the lowest in the International League. More impressive is the fact that Norfolk has allowed 92 hits - an average of 6.6 per game.

When the statistical evidence was relayed to the team's primary closer Jim Miller, he moved his finger over his mouth.

"Don't say it," he said, perhaps worried that an acknowledgment of the team's consistently strong pitching performance would bring an end to the run of success.

But even Miller will concede it's impossible to ignore, and when asked how they are doing it Miller didn't hesitate to offer his thoughts.

"You've got guys going in, throwing strikes and going after hitters," said Miller. "We're making them put the ball in play, making them hit our pitch."

The straightforward approach adopted by the staff has paid dividends. Starters are going deep into games, which in turn has placed the relievers in advantageous situations when they are called upon in later innings.

Still, Allenson has his quibbles.

The pitch counts for the starters could be lower. But by and large, Allenson is satisfied. Each pitcher who has been in the Tides' five-man rotation has at least one quality start. Five relievers have yielded two or fewer runs this year.

"Whenever somebody goes six innings, the next one wants to go seven," said Jason Berken who won his Triple-A debut last Tuesday.

And in turn, Griffin said, "success breeds success."

Last season, Griffin oversaw the talented staff in Bowie that had four pitchers who won 10 or more games. Three of them - Chris Tillman, Berken and Dave Hernandez - are in Norfolk. The fourth, Brad Bergesen, was a member of the Tides earlier this month before his promotion to Baltimore. Griffin saw how the pitchers coalesced into one formidable unit with the Baysox last year. He thinks the Tides' pitching staff - from the starters to the relievers - can do the same this season.

"They all feed off of one another," Griffin said. "I've been pleased with the starters and I have also been pleased with the bullpen. It's early in the season and we're still trying to get our feet planted on the ground. But we started the first day and we'll keep going until the last out is made."

Rainer Sabin, (757) 446-2367, or rainer.sabin@pilotonline.com