For the first time in his life, Jeff Manship had doubt. Doubt that he could throw a baseball without pain. Doubt that he could be the dominant pitcher that he once was. Doubt that he could physically withstand the repercussions of pitching from one day to the next. “I would throw an inning or two and then have a setback and have to wait some time before I could throw again,” said Manship of his 2005 (sophomore) season following elbow surgery in February of 2004.
“It was up and down. At times it felt strong, but I couldn’t rely on it at all. I think the most I got up to was about four innings in one stint.”
Manship, who underwent Tommy John surgery, missed his freshman campaign in 2004 and logged just 22 2/3 innings last season. He won a couple of games, saved another, and still managed to strike out 20 batters, or nearly one per inning. But he was a far cry from the dominant righthander coming out of San Antonio where he fashioned a 22-2 record with a 0.65 earned run average in his final two years at Reagan High School. (A finger injury on a “comebacker” in mid-April sidelined him for two weeks last spring as well.)
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ND Sports Information |
Known for his devastating slider, Manship injured his elbow in the summer of 2003, shortly before reporting to Notre Dame. When rest and rehabilitation that fall and winter didn’t work, he underwent surgery on Feb. 11, 2004. It’s been a long road back. “There is always doubt in your mind, but as long as you stick with the rehab, you should be back as strong if not stronger than before,” Manship said.
After logging 50 innings of work last summer in the prestigious Cape Cod League—where he recorded a 2.88 ERA—Manship is ready to help form Notre Dame’s “big three” rotation, along with senior lefthander Tom Thornton and fellow junior righthander Jeff Samardzija.
“That was the best I’ve felt,” said Manship of his Cape Cod League experience. “I could go out there and throw seven innings again. Now, everything is full go.”
“He’s 100 percent and ready to go,” said Irish pitching coach Terry Rooney. “He has no restrictions. It’s not even a hesitation in our minds.”
Manship is a different pitcher today than he was before the elbow injury. The steady stream of breaking balls is now balanced with more fastballs and the development of a changeup. In high school, where Manship struck out 292 batters in 151 innings in 2002-03, he would throw his hard slider any time in any situation. The physical setback has prompted him to reevaluate his approach.
“Before the surgery, I basically relied on fastballs and curveballs,” Manship said. “Now I’ve developed a changeup, which should help my arm a lot. Plus, I’m relying more on my fastball. Before it was probably half curveballs, have fastballs.”
Like most dominant pitchers at a young age, a changeup wasn’t considered a wise alternative. Throwing slower, albeit a change of speeds, simply gave opposing hitters a chance to catch up to him.
“It seemed like a changeup was hurting you because you’re going down to their level,” Manship said. “If they can’t catch up to you, why throw it slower? I remember the first time I threw a changeup, I think I was 12 and the guy hit a home run. So that put a bad taste in my mouth.
“I used to hate (throwing the changeup), but I love it now. I threw it this summer. You’ve got to stay behind it and make sure your mechanics are the same.”
Manship also has confidence in his 90-mile-per-hour plus fastball.
“It will be majority fastballs,” Manship said. “I’ll throw the curveball just to strike out guys or early in the count to get ahead. Before I would throw it any time possible…Coach Rooney knows what to throw.”
Manship has the ability to develop into Notre Dame’s No. 1 pitcher. But Thorntown is the veteran with 20 career victories, and Samardzija has developed into a stalwart with an 8-1 record in 2005 and a 13-4 career mark.
“(Manship) has tremendous stuff,” Rooney said. “It’s a matter of him being able to put it all together. He’s only thrown about 25 innings of college baseball, so there’s going to be a little bit of margin for error and room for growth. Once he gets all these things ironed out and continues to learn how to pitch in sequences, he’s going to be successful. His stuff is good.”
Manship, just a 50th-round selection by Arizona out of high school because of his declared intention to attend Notre Dame, would like to get himself back into the mix this spring. A bounce-back campaign undoubtedly would lead to a shot at the professional ranks by this summer.
“This is a huge year for me,” Manship said. “This is my first full season, so I’ve got to go out there and do my very best. I will have more options this year compared to next year. But if I don’t get drafted as high as I would like, this is a great place to be.”
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