PHILADELPHIA -- This version of Nick Pivetta is barely recognizable from the version of Pivetta that broke into the big leagues with the Phillies from 2017-20.
But Pivetta insists that this version of himself also wouldn’t be possible without the lessons he learned across those four seasons in Philadelphia. Which made Wednesday afternoon’s start mean just a little bit more.
Pivetta is in the midst of his best season as a big leaguer. He seems to be blossoming into a front-of-the-rotation weapon at long last. So … how is he a different pitcher from his stint in Philadelphia a half-decade ago?
“That,” Pivetta laughed, “is like a whole podcast, bro.”
No podcast necessary. Pivetta’s performance on Wednesday told the story well enough. He worked six innings of one-run ball, as the Padres beat the Phillies, 6-4, in Game 1 of their split doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park.
Pivetta struck out six and, for a second straight start, did not allow a walk. In the process, he lowered his ERA to 3.25 and earned his ninth win, tied for the most in the NL.
“Nick was great,” said Padres manager Mike Shildt. “He made big pitches, controlled counts, breaking ball was really good, fastball was where he wanted it. I liked the fact he was able to own the inner-half.”
Across those four seasons in Philadelphia, Pivetta never put it together quite like this.
“Where we're at differently is I've taken the building blocks that I've learned from all of my past experiences -- good or bad, mental struggles, physical struggles -- and as I've gotten older, through my experiences, I've been able to pitch the way I've pitched,” said Pivetta, who recorded a 5.50 ERA in 92 career appearances with Philadelphia.
After he was dealt to Boston in 2020, Pivetta’s performance improved. But he continued to tantalize. He showed flashes of the stuff to become a top-tier starter, but he didn’t do it consistently.
That has seemingly changed in San Diego. When Pivetta has hit rough patches, he’s snapped out of them quickly. When he’s run into trouble within games, he’s generally fought through it.
“I think that's what every pitcher strives for,” Pivetta said. “That's what the secret sauce really is to pitching: How consistent can you be?”
Additionally, Pivetta has dealt with a number of weather-related challenges this season that have thrown off his routines. That was the case again this week. A native of Victoria, British Columbia, he spoke of his excitement to pitch on Canada Day on Tuesday. Then, his start was rained out and bumped to Wednesday afternoon. Clearly the schedule change didn’t affect him.
“You get a nice day of rest, then you go out and make sure you do the exact same thing that you were meant to do the day before,” Pivetta said.
That level of composure comes with experience. Pivetta now has nearly a decade’s worth of it. He’s a wholly different pitcher than he was in 2017.
It’s not because of his arsenal. He still throws a fastball about half the time. He still complements it with a curveball. He now throws a sweeper instead of a slider, but the pitch mix is mostly the same. Those pitches are just better -- as is Pivetta’s understanding of how to use them.
“If you were to look at me back when I was a Phillie, I am walking four guys, I'm giving up four runs, I'm throwing 100 pitches in five innings, and it's a 5-5 baseball game,” Pivetta said.
Instead, he cruised through five innings before allowing his only run on a Kyle Schwarber solo homer. Pivetta acknowledged that might’ve shaken him in the past. But not Wednesday. He retired three straight and his day was done. After a nervy ending -- the Phillies put the tying runs in scoring position in the ninth -- San Diego was back in the win column after consecutive losses.
Pivetta has been everything the Padres hoped he would be when they targeted him this offseason, signing him to a four-year contract on the first day of full-squad workouts at Spring Training. And he’s done so in a beleaguered starting rotation, with Michael King and Yu Darvish on the injured list.
“He’s fit right in,” Shildt said of Pivetta’s arrival in San Diego this season. “He’s taken the challenge. And we don’t want to heap anything more on him than [we] need to, but he’s taken the rightful challenge to be an anchor for our starting pitching."