How To Pitch Like A Surgeon, Not A Meat Cutter.

When Matt Chico, a 5-foot-11 lefty in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization, earned a promotion to double-A in 2004, he brought a daredevil attitude to go with his 93 mph fastball.

“No one can hit my fastball. I can overpower everyone,” he believed.

Hitters, however, thought differently. They feasted on Chico's fastball like a $10 Las Vegas buffet.

“I don't think I really had the concept of pitch selection,” said Chico, 22, now with the single-A Lancaster JetHawks. “I only felt confident in two of my pitches, and if one of them was off, you can guess what happened.”

“He struggled, clear and simple,” said JetHawks pitching coach Jeff Pico. “But since he was sent down, he has worked really hard for me. He works his butt off and he wants to prove that he belongs at the next level.”

Former Fallbrook High coach Jay Craven said he's not surprised it took Chico a while to understand the mental aspects of the game. He remembers Chico's grip-it-and-rip-it approach in high school.

“He was nails,” Craven said. “He loved to play the game and he was very talented. That's a good combination. But he had some control issues in high school because he knew he could just get by with his fastball. But at the next level, you have to use your noodle. You have to learn to get into the hitter's head and become a complete pitcher.”

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