New Tiger Randy Wolf Talks Pitching Arsenal And Living With 'No Regret'
By Ashley Scoby
@AshleyScoby
DETROIT (CBS Detroit) -- Randy Wolf had just about given up.
At 38-years-old and fighting to even get anyone to watch him throw, Wolf admitted to letting the R-word creep into his head.
"I was kind of left by the wayside and I was pretty much going to retire if this offseason I didn't feel as good as I did," he said. "And when I was throwing I felt incredible. I hadn't felt that way in a long time and it was hard for me to walk away when I knew I felt that way."
Wolf caught on with the Blue Jays' system, where he started 23 games at the Triple-A level before Thursday. Then he got a call from his former teammate, Tigers manager Brad Ausmus. Ausmus had been Wolf's catcher in Los Angeles in 2009, and the two had stayed in touch.
Wolf was getting his chance to come back to the majors with the Tigers.
"Aus is great," Wolf said on Friday. "I think his first words to me when he called was, I'll say, 'Don't mess this up.'"
Wolf will get that opportunity he's been waiting for on Saturday – coincidentally, his 39th birthday – when he'll make his first start for Detroit against the Texas Rangers.
Although he's in the twilight of his career, Wolf is still confident in his abilities. And he also is throwing stuff he never did before -- he's added a cutter in the latter part of his career, for example.
"In some ways I think my velocity is pretty much the same," he said. "My delivery was a little bit different when I was younger. I kind of dropped and kind of short-armed everything where now I'm a little bit taller, I feel like I have a little bit more leverage. I throw a cutter now; I didn't throw a cutter then."
Wolf also mentioned his changeup as something that could be a better part of his arsenal these days.
"My changeup has been a lot more comfortable this year," he said. "My changeup has always been my touch-and-go pitch where I feel like I didn't know what it was going to be from day to day, where this year, it's felt a lot more consistent."
Consistency is a word often tied to Wolf's career, as he's been a steady presence in the majors since he broke in with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1999. He spent eight seasons there, and eventually played with the L.A. Dodgers, San Diego Padres, Houston Astros, Milwaukee Brewers, Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins as well.
This past offseason, though, he had the chance to either hang it up or toil in the minors for an undetermined amount of time in his late 30s.
He chose baseball.
"I think the most impressive thing … is he was still willing to put time in at the minor league level to try and make it back," Ausmus said. "He's played for quite a while; I'm sure he's made plenty of money. I think that speaks to the character and how much he loves the game of baseball."
Added Wolf: "I kind of always wanted to live in a way where when I look back when I'm 50 years old, I don't want to look back with any regrets. I had to give it one more try and see what I had in the tank."
