Notes on Gunkel's splitter, Mancini's power, Encarnacion's new deal

It was a suggestion from his Double-A pitching coach that came after the 2015 season and before opening day in 2016. For right-hander Joe Gunkel, it was advice that he put to good use.

A pitcher that was added to the Orioles' 40-man roster in November, Gunkel has always been minus a blazing fastball. He gets outs with a fastball between 88 and 92 mph, so he is always looking to work on and improve his secondary pitches to improve overall as a pitcher.

That suggestion led to him making a change with his off-speed pitch. He went from throwing a straight changeup to using a split-finger fastball as his change-of-pace pitch.

"Alan Mills (then pitching coach at Double-A Bowie) made a suggestion last offseason to work on that," Gunkel said. "I worked with him in Bowie on it and Oliver Drake helped a lot with it when I got to (Triple-A) Norfolk. At one point of the (2016) year, it was one of my better pitches. I don't throw a straight changeup anymore.

"I had struggled with my changeup some in 2015. My changeup was a little too fast and Mills called me in the offseason to check in on me. He said to play around with the splitter a little bit. It felt good throwing it during the offseason and I worked on it during the spring and in Bowie for the first month. Then it really made strides when I was in Norfolk."

Give Gunkel credit for sticking with a pitch that was not easy to improve and perfect right away.

"It took a while to get the hang of it," he said. "Once I got to Triple-A, it started to get a lot better and I got pointers from Oliver Drake, who has a really good one. There were some little adjustments I needed to make and then I felt a lot more comfortable with it.

"I've developed full confidence in it. I like to throw it early in counts to lefties, when I know they're being aggressive. It helps. It has a good amount of depth, so if I can fill up the bottom of the zone with fastballs. I don't necessarily have to throw the splitter for a strike to be effective. You can use it for a putaway pitch, but I also like to use it early in counts, fastball counts, to try to get them looking for a fastball and swinging at a splitter."

We recently posted an interview with Trey Mancini in this space. Mancini hit three homers in just 14 at-bats last year for the Orioles in September, but said he knows he still has to establish himself all over again in spring training.

In the last couple of years, Mancini has played in a good hitter's park at Bowie, then a tough park to hit in at Norfolk and then moved to Camden Yards where a well-struck ball can carry well.

"When I got up to Norfolk, it is true what they say - it is a tough park to drive the ball well in, especially in the gaps," Mancini said. "But going from Bowie to Norfolk, you can't change anything with your approach. You're going to fly out more on the warning track than you would in Bowie or Baltimore, but I was glad I didn't change anything when I went to Norfolk and happy that I did not. If you hit it well, you can still hit it out."

In 2015, Mancini homered once every 24.9 at-bats at Bowie. In 2016, he homered once every 40.0 at-bats at Norfolk and then hit three homers in 11 at-bats at Camden Yards.

Encarnacion leaves the East: Slugger Edwin Encarnacion, whose three-run homer in October ended the Orioles' season in Toronto, is no longer in the American League East. He has agreed to a contract with the Cleveland Indians, taking one top free agent slugger off the board.

Encarnacion, who will be 34 on opening day, gets a three-year deal worth $60 million with a fourth-year team option that will pay him either $25 million if the Indians pick it up or another $5 million if they don't.

It is fair to ask and wonder if the Orioles should have taken a strong run at Encarnacion. His $65 million guaranteed dollars doesn't seem much north of what the team has reportedly offered Mark Trumbo. Of course, the Orioles would have lost a first-round pick for signing him.

Encarnacion hit 42 homers last year and led the AL with 127 RBIs. Over the past five years, he has hit .272/.367/.544 with 193 home runs and a .912 OPS. Encarnacion has played 127 career games with 544 plate appearances against Baltimore, batting .266/.342/.549 with 34 homers, 83 RBIs and with an .891 OPS. At least now the Orioles won't face him 19 times per season.