AN Exclusive: Blogfather Checks In With Jeffrey Springs

I interviewed Jeffrey Springs on Friday, March 21st, the day before his final spring training tuneup.

Nico: The first thing I wanted to ask you about, you’ll have to correct me if I’m wrong because I’m getting this from an article that I read, it’s not something that I knew firsthand. But my understanding is that last September you were shut down at a point where maybe you felt you could keep pitching, but the medical staff was like, “You really need to stop.” So I wanted to get your thoughts on just where your arm was at and how that all developed?

Springs: Yeah, I think it was between the rehab outings in AAA and the big leagues I think I was pushing the 60-65 innings and then had probably one of my better starts. How I felt, you know, this stuff was a little bit better. It was kind of back to what it was pre-surgery.

I think it was the first outing of 6 innings and there was just a slight – (my arm) didn’t bounce back quite as well as it has been and yeah I mean we’re at the end of the season you know I want to play every chance that I get and I tried to argue my way into even an inning or two you know just for me personally to finish “healthy” on the active roster.

And I went and saw the team doctors just for double check and they looked at images everything looked great it was feeling you know totally fine 100% normal but after talking to him and the pitching coach and the manager and our head trainer, I think it was three weeks left of the season at this point and we were out of the postseason.

So they advised against it and I trust those guys. So just as bad as I wanted to pitch, it was kind of, I listened to them, they had my best interests at heart and they know more about it than I do and Dr. Meister (who performed the TJS) just said there’s a point that most guys when they come back from TJ they when you come back in season it’s pretty difficult just because you’re throwing for essentially over a year and then you know you’re into pitching depending on where you’re at so I had been throwing since October the previous year and you know he kind of said there’s a little bit of a dead arm period whatever you want to call it, that kind of everybody runs into.

But health-wise I felt good, it’s just the ball wasn’t, the life wasn’t there coming out. But I took the normal rest off and as soon as I picked up the ball this offseason it was back to feeling my pre-surgery (self) which was such a relief because coming back in season was, it was tough I’m not gonna lie. You don’t feel good, you know your elbow is different, the body’s trying to catch up. And coming back the end of July, first of August, big leaguers are in the swing of things and I’m trying to play catch up and that makes it really hard.

So I felt like I was pitching at 90, 95% as far as velocity wise. Everything was a tick down, but kind of just having to rely on pitchability. I feel like I can pitch really well, even if my stuff’s not quite there. So it was a test to really see, can I pitch, can I move the ball around? Because like I said, at that point in the season, teams are making playoff pushes and guys are dialed in.

So it was challenging, but yeah, I mean, I feel great now. And it’s such a relief this offseason going into it healthy, being able to train and do the things I needed to do and feeling normal again, you know, like I was pre-surgery has been a huge relief.

Nico: I mean just from ordinary injuries that I’ve had, there seems to be that point where your brain is telling your body “Don’t do this, be careful, you know, remember how that sprained or snapped before.” Was there that experience coming back when you first started throwing?

Springs: Yes. I mean, you know, everybody goes through it. I’ve been very fortunate. For 30 years, or 20 years, however long I’ve been playing, I’ve always just picked the ball up and throw. I’ve played my whole life. It’s never a second thought when you pick up a ball, but then after surgery, every throw early on is kind of very mechanical, segmented. You’re very hyper aware of how you’re feeling and this and that.

And I’ve got to give a lot of credit to the rehab team there, the teammates that I was there with, unfortunately, going through similar things. Just talking through it with them and, “Hey, this is how it feels. This is normal.” And comes a point in time to where it’s like, I trust that Dr. Meister is one of the best. I trust what he did, it’s fixed.

They said it’s fixed. Kind of just have to let it go, just kind of grab it, let it eat, so to speak, and push through that hump. But yeah, there’s definitely early on, especially with breaking balls and stuff like that, where you have to really do something slightly different and you know the elbow is going to feel a little bit again early on as you’re kind of getting the range of motion back breaking through the scar tissue and just getting back to normal catch play.

But yeah there was I think one bullpen, there’s a higher intensity bullpen before live so where I was like “All right it’s coming out good you know, the velo stuff is there, the breaking pitches are there, I’m good, here it goes.” So yeah, but I mean everybody, I’m not gonna sit here and say that yeah, there’s not all kinds of ups and downs from a mental side.

It’s such a long process. Everybody goes through it differently, but you’re all kind of going through the same thing, if that makes sense. It’s just how you can manage it, handle it, and again, give a lot of credit to the medical staff that we had, the few teammates that unfortunately were hurt when I was hurt. They’re good friends, so they helped me through it a lot. Unfortunately they had been through TJ before, so they’re much more experienced on it, unfortunately. But it’s a long process, for sure.

Nico: Now you referred to that start where you felt as good as you had felt in a while. How would you compare how you felt then to how you feel right now?

Springs: I feel much better now. The first several starts, you don’t feel like yourself. It’s just different. The arm feels different. The ball is coming out different. I don’t feel like it’s moving as well. That start was the first one that felt kind of like myself, but now I feel there’s no second-guessing anything.

All I’m doing is trying to pitch and get outs and make the adjustments. There’s no more, “What did that feel like, I’m not doing this or what if I do this?” No, it’s when I pick up the ball and I’m on the mound, it’s I’m trying to get the guy out and I’m trying to make my pitches. Now trying to get everything dialed in is a whole other conversation right now but yeah I feel completely 100% normal which is much better than I felt all last year.

Nico: You know one of the sort of lesser-known secrets about coming back from Tommy John surgery is that it’s not the velocity that’s always an issue at first, it’s often control or command. And it seems just from – I’ve seen one of your starts on TV and mostly just watching box scores – but it seems like maybe you’re following along that track where the velocity is back, but the command isn’t quite there, or how does it feel to you?

Springs: As in right now? Yeah. I think just trying to get more reps off the mound, trying to get things up with my body. You know, there’s one or two little issues that I feel like I’ve figured out, and now it’s just addressing them, and then just the repetition.

I’m someone that likes to throw a lot, so we just need to be off the mound. And every day is getting slightly better. So yeah, it’s just kind of honing in on, like I said, it’s not a big adjustment. It’s not a big change or anything like that. It’s just very minor, allowing me to get into the positions I need to get into at ball release and stuff like that. So today was a good day and I’m excited to get back out there tomorrow.

So constantly working on things, you’re constantly trying to be as consistent as possible, just understanding myself and again, finding those right cues to be able to make the adjustments in game. So you know it hasn’t gone quite like I would have liked it but again each one’s kind of taking away something from it each time and you know building towards a bigger picture so to speak.

But I feel like I’m right there to making the adjustment and getting back to pitching, executing how I know I can.

Nico: How are you preparing for the endurance part where outside of 2022 your career high in starts would be 7? You haven’t had a lot of repetition of building up 100, 150 innings. How are you addressing that for what you hope is 25 to 30 starts?

Springs: Yeah I mean that starts like right away in offseason from the conditioning, from the workouts. Like I said I’ve always been someone that throws a lot. And yeah, it’s been cut short, obviously, from the injuries. But in ‘22, when I moved into the rotation, I was coming off ACL surgery and was able to kind of pick up from a “1+ IP guy”right into 5, 6, 7 innings. I feel like I did that relatively well. And I was able to handle the big jump in innings there. And nothing really dipped off at any point.

So it’s just the offseason work preparing the body, preparing the legs, preparing the arm to withstand. Obviously I know that the goals have changed over the years but to me it’s 200 innings, you know guys that can do that have the utmost respect because it is so hard. That’s that’s my goal every year as a starter is to make 30-plus starts, to be strong going into the postseason, and wherever the innings fall is where they fall.

But you know our job is to be out there deep into the game every 5 days and that helps the bullpen, it helps everybody if I’m doing my job. I know the other starters are going to do their job. Just the preparation from the first day of the offseason, you start training and everything from that point up to this point.

Nico: Now when you say your goal is to pitch 200 innings, your goal last year was to pitch another one or two innings and the medical staff was like, “Mmm…I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Are there no restrictions or plans to manage the workload gradually?

Springs: No, I think what I did last year, I threw enough to make that jump. Now, obviously, yes, the goal is 200 innings. If I can get 160, 170, I’m still going to be pretty tickled with that. If I can make 30 plus starts and make as many of them as I can quality (starts), again, to help the team win.

I want to pitch deep into the game when it’s my turn to take the ball. I want to do the best I can. I know my teammates in the rotation. They’re going to do their job. They’re ready to go. They’re prepared. I want to do my small part every five days to try to help us win as many games as I can.

Nico: Last question, I’m going to pivot away from the mound for a moment. You were pitching for the Tampa Bay Rays, a small market team that suddenly realized they were going to have to play in a minor league or spring training stadium. And then that announcement comes up and then just a couple of weeks later, I think, you’re traded to the one team…(Springs starts laughing)…you know where I’m going with this…

…I’m not saying you’re bad luck, but you might be the expert now on playing for a small market team playing in a stadium that’s not made for major leagues. I’m just curious your perspective as a player on that.

Springs: Yeah, I mean, I might be the only big leaguer ever traded from a minor league park to another minor league park! I might be able to hold that one forever, hopefully. But no, I mean, those circumstances are out of our control. You know, with what happened in St. Pete. Natural disaster, our house got flooded along with so many others.

So that’s super unfortunate. I’m glad they were able to work out something close to the St. Pete, Tampa area, just for the sake of the staff that lives close by. St. Pete’s a great place to play, great fans. And then, yeah, the Athletics’ circumstance, again, that’s out of our control. You know, that’s way above my pay grade as far as moving the team and getting ready for Las Vegas and stuff.

But the way I look at it is they’re giving me an opportunity to put on a major league uniform. And that’s something that I took a lot of pride in and means a lot to me. So honestly, I’ll play anywhere they want me to play. Uh-huh, whatever park, wherever, I’m grateful that the A’s – they went out and traded for you, which obviously means they want you. That’s a good feeling when someone seeks you out.

Again, I get an opportunity to wear the uniform and I’m excited to be here. It’s a great group. They’ve turned the corner last couple years and it’s trending completely upward and I’m excited to be on board, and like I said hopefully we can win a whole lot of games together.

Springs’ first start with the A’s is scheduled to be this evening against Seattle, with game 2 of the season beginning at 6:40pm.