Turns out, Pujols had nothing to do with it.
Figuring that he should develop more pitches as his major-league career deepened, Lidge fiddled around with a split-finger fastball and a cut-fastball in ’06.
“I was off on my mechanics, and it was tough for me to say because people thought what they thought,” he says. “So I gave up trying to explain.”
“I didn’t know what was going to happen with the cutter every time I threw it,” Lidge says of the inconsistent location. “And I couldn’t throw my slider for strikes.” Link
No kidding? Really?