PHILADELPHIA — Cam Schlittler was not going to pitch Tuesday, but he traveled to the All-Star Game anyway because the event is about more than an exhibition.
It’s an opportunity for a 25-year-old, hard-throwing pitcher in his first full season in the majors to seek out a 43-year-old, hard-throwing pitcher in his last season in the majors.
Schlittler met the retiring Justin Verlander at dinner Monday night, had a quick conversation and was planning to further pick his brain during warmups and during the game Tuesday, the two talking in the dugout during the 4-0 American League victory at Citizens Bank Park.
There are few pitchers like Schlittler, who almost exclusively throws three different kinds of fastballs, but Verlander and Schlittler share a unique ability — even in today’s game of flamethrowers — to throw hard.
When Verlander was breaking into the league, he was known for often increasing his velocity deeper into games, saving a reserve of gas for when he needed it.
That is the kind of ability that “great” pitchers have, Schlittler said, being able to “flip that switch when they want to throw harder.”
That is the type of conversation Schlittler may have had in mind with Verlander.
“I wouldn’t say I can really control when I throw my hardest,” said Schlittler, whose average pitch — that’s pitch, not fastball — has been thrown at 95.9 mph this year. “I feel like I don’t know my body well enough to do that yet. I feel like I need more experience.”
X-rays on the left pinkie of Junior Caminero came back negative after the Rays star was drilled by a fastball from Cardinals righty Riley O’Brien in the fourth inning.
Caminero went down, remained down for several moments, then got up and made no motion toward first base, instead walking off the field, into the dugout and through the tunnel.
Juan Soto said he had a “great” time at the game, which included a fourth-inning single that was one of just three NL hits.
He also chatted at length with Yordan Álvarez before the game, having told reporters Monday that he wanted to pick the brain of the Astros slugger.
“It’s incredible to hear something from such a hitter and a guy that can hit that much,” Álvarez said Tuesday afternoon. “I think it’s going to be something interesting if we get to catch up.”
Asked Monday which hitter’s brain he wanted to pick, Juan Soto immediately told reporters, “Yordan Alvarez.”
“It’s incredible to hear something from such a hitter and a guy that can hit that much,” the Astros star, who said he’s talked with Soto in the past, said Tuesday through an interpreter. “I think it’s going to be something interesting if we get to catch up.”
