If actions and words are any indicator, there appears to be a difference of opinion regarding the importance of New York Yankees starter Phil Hughes developing his changeup.
Coaches keep mentioning Hughes' further development and use of the pitch as the primary goal for him this spring.
But following his initial Grapefruit League start, Hughes all but laughed off that notion.
Hughes told beat writer Peter Botte that he threw a grand total of three changeups in his two scoreless innings of work—that's not exactly "working on the pitch."
Hughes also said he believes he's "set a world record" on changeup questions.
"Hopefully it'll be decent pitch by time I'm 40," Hughes continued. "Not looking for it to be anything outstanding, just usable."
Yankees coaches keep saying they want Hughes to develop that pitch. Hughes, meanwhile, hardly ever throws it, even in meaningless spring training games, then makes jokes about the very thought of a changeup ever being a significant pitch in his arsenal.
To refer to this as any sort of "split" between Hughes and the coaching staff would be overstating the issue. Nevertheless, it's disappointing that Hughes apparently fails to recognize the value of a good changeup, especially for a guy with as good a fastball as he has.
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