IronPigs pitcher experiments with knuckleball in minors: ‘If I got the go-ahead, why not?’

Nick Nelson now throws a knuckleball. (Cheryl Pursell)

ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Sometimes, Nick Nelson forgets about his newest pitch until his catcher gives him the signal.

The 28-year-old IronPigs swingman had always been a traditional pitcher with a traditional arsenal, and that had gotten him quite far. So when a knuckleball gets called these days, it can still be a bit of a surprise to the right-hander himself — not to mention how opposing batters feel.

“It is pretty funny watching the hitters’ reactions,” Nelson said Sunday afternoon at Coca-Cola Park, “especially if it’s their first time seeing it.”

For the first time in his baseball career, Nelson is experimenting with a knuckleball in live action. He’s added his version of the novelty pitch to his usual mix. It’s a quirky move, but something he can continue to work on as the Triple-A season winds down. He’s enjoyed using it so far.

Nelson has been throwing a knuckleball since high school, but he’d never used it in a game at any level before this summer. “It’s always been kind of a mess-around pitch,” he said. He learned how to grip it from watching YouTube videos and has always shown it off for fun. It caught the eye of IronPigs pitching coach Ryan Buchter. In late June, the former big-league reliever suggested that Nelson try out the knuckleball for real.

“I was very shocked,” Nelson said. “I didn’t really know what to think about it. And then when I started throwing it off the mound, I got some feedback from some of our hitters that stood in on it. I think that really kind of got me excited to start throwing it.”

His offensive teammates at Lehigh Valley were impressed with what they saw, and the Phillies gave the IronPigs and Nelson approval to utilize the knuckler. It’s been part of his scouting report since July.

“If I got the go-ahead, why not?” he said. “I’ve been trying to throw at least a couple each outing. It’s getting better as I’ve thrown it more in a game — more consistent, more for strikes and whatnot.”

This season has been far from a banner year for Nelson. He has a 6.70 ERA in 29 Triple-A games. In 2022, Nelson had a 4.85 ERA in 47 appearances for the Phillies. He led the bullpen in total innings and pitched in the World Series. But he’s only made four major-league outings in the past two years and was removed from Philadelphia’s 40-man roster earlier this month.

The organization and Nelson landed on the decision to give the knuckleball a chance as an attempted boost for the pitcher, another option to keep batters off balance. It could be beneficial to his career if the pitch pans out.

“Just looking to add another layer of value to him,” Lehigh Valley manager Anthony Contreras said. “They gave us permission to throw that in games, and obviously it’s a work in progress. It’s starting to develop and become better. He’s getting some swing and miss. He’s starting to throw the ball in the zone a little more with it, and he looks more comfortable throwing the pitch.”

Nick Nelson’s knuckleball grip. (Ty Daubert, Phillies Nation)

Contreras managed Matt Waldron, a starting pitcher for the Padres for most of this season before being sent down to Triple-A last week, in High-A Fort Wayne the year he started to throw his knuckleball. Contreras has been through this before, and he’s preached patience to Nelson. It’s not easy to add a pitch in the middle of a baseball career, especially one so unpredictable. Contreras saw the early parts of Waldron’s development as he worked his way to becoming a major-league starter with a knuckleball, and he’s happy with where Nelson is at right now.

“It’s added a good mix to his repertoire,” Contreras said. “But I think as he gets more comfortable, you’re going to see an even better knuckleball. Hopefully he sticks with it and it becomes a weapon for him.”

It hasn’t been perfect since he started throwing the pitch. Nelson threw eight knuckleballs as he gave up three runs in 2 1/3 innings against Buffalo on July 10. All eight went for balls in his first start of the season. He has a 5.63 ERA in his last eight outings, including that start. But there has been progress.

Not exactly looking to become a designated knuckleballer, Nelson isn’t just lobbing in floaters with deadened spin like Charlie Hough or Tom Candiotti. He throws a hard knuckler that goes around 78 to 81 mph; he cranked one up to 85 mph in Jacksonville earlier this month and hit the batter. For Nelson, the pitch is a complementary piece, something to throw off a hitter in a pitcher’s count. He saw that go to plan in his last outing on Saturday as he sprinkled in some knuckleballs in four scoreless relief innings against Rochester.

“They always have to keep it in the back of their mind that I do have one, especially when I get to two strikes,” he said. “And I do feel like it’s made everything play up a little bit.”

Nelson is having a good time as he’s made his party trick a part of his pitching plans. In a perfect world, the knuckleball could potentially help Nelson get outs and climb his way back to the big leagues. But it’s probably too early to tell exactly what kind of impact the pitch will have on his outlook. For now, Nelson will continue to embrace the new aspect of his game.

“Hopefully I can keep throwing it,” he said. “Time will tell on that one. It’s definitely been a good pitch, if not just to get them off the fastball, change-up or slider. Hopefully I can still throw it. I enjoy it, and I think it’s really fun to throw it.”