New Brewers Pitching Coach Derek Johnson Talks Adjustments and Expectations

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Photos: Scott Paulus/Milwaukee Brewers

The work days are long for all baseball coaches during spring training, but they’re especially challenging for those getting used to a new role in a new organization. We caught up with new Brewers pitching coach Derek Johnson to talk about the adjustments he’s had to make in his first season on the job and the work involved in becoming familiar with the skill sets and psyches of dozens of new pitchers.

You’re more than halfway through your first spring training as a major league pitching coach. What have these first few weeks been like?

A lot like you’d imagine, I think. I’m really just trying to get to know guys, how they operate and what they do, what they like and what they don’t. So it’s really just that “getting to know you” period and trying to build a relationship with guys.

You came into camp with dozens of pitchers this spring and you’re down to a few less now, but there’s still a lot of guys there. How do you go about learning all those guys’ arsenals and personalities?

I try to pay attention. That’s probably the first thing, is just observing. When you’re sitting in a bullpen, it’s asking the right questions. Off the field, when you’re spending time with guys in the clubhouse or, you know, even just between drills, really trying to ask the right questions and be a good listener.

This is your first spring coaching on the major league side (after three seasons as the Cubs’ minor league pitching coordinator and eleven as the pitching coach at Vanderbilt University). How is your job different now from what you’ve done previously?

Way better players (laughs). That’s kind of first and foremost: These guys are the best in the world at what they do. But at the same time it’s still baseball. There are still things that we do that are what you would call “winning baseball” or “winning pitching,” and the good part about that is that they learned most of that stuff in Little League and the rules still apply.

So it’s different, but not different. It’s still baseball.

In addition to all the challenges coming with your first spring training with all of these players, this is also the first spring training together for a new Brewers coaching staff and Craig Counsell’s first spring training as a manager. How are things coming together with the staff?

Really good. It’s the same thing: It’s just relationships, connecting, trying to help as much as possible in any area, not just pitching but any area of the game that’s needed. We’ve got a really good group of coaches, we’ve got a really great manager in Craig, we’ve shot a lot of ideas off of one another.

The great part about baseball, I think, is you get people from different backgrounds and different areas and whatever and we have this common thing. It’s easy to talk about baseball. It’s easy to talk about the game, and that’s basically what we do in that coaches’ room every morning.

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Getting back to your role individually: Is there a single message or a single thing that you’re trying to impress upon all your new guys, or is it different for everybody?

Well, it’s different, but I think the overall message for me is, walking out of camp, whatever we’re good at, I want to become great at it. I’m not as interested in the players’ weaknesses. I mean, we all have them, we all have flaws and things that we can’t do on a baseball field. I’m really interested in what we can do. I’m really interested in what we do, doing it even better. So that’s probably been the overall message is to try to keep it simple, and whatever we’re good at, let’s strive to be great at it.

You’re getting your first chance in person this spring to see a lot of guys throughout the organization. Is there anyone that’s really caught your eye or exceeded expectations?

I wouldn’t go there at this point. In an evaluation process in spring training you get glimpses of greatness with all of them, and you also have things where they might not pitch as well because they’re working on certain things. It’s just really giving them the latitude or leeway to be able to do that without too many consequences.

And you have different dynamics: You have guys that have made the club and guys who are trying to make it. With that being said, you see great things and you see things that make you shake your head a bit. But the bottom line for me is, I wouldn’t point one guy out and say, “Wow, that’s unbelievable.” They’ve all had their moments.