Wahoos' Lopez posts career-high eight zeros

Coming off two rough outings, José López and Double-A Blue Wahoos pitching coach Danny Darwin discussed making slight tweaks to his delivery. 
"We talked about different things that I should do," the Reds right-hander said. "One of them was shortening my arm path. I've been working with that, and tonight, it was all about trusting it."
Using the new approach, Lopez scattered three hits and a walk while striking out seven over a career-high eight frames as Pensacola blanked Biloxi, 2-0, on Thursday at MGM Park. 

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"I think if you talk to any pitcher, especially starters, they'll tell you that you build off your fastball," he said. "That was huge for me. A handful of pitches with your fastball, hitting all corners of the zone -- up, down, left, right -- and I was able to do that. Being able to throw my off-speed for strikes just opened up the zone. Going back to basics, putting an emphasis on the fastball command, opened up the rest of the gameplan." 
Lopez was bumped up to the Southern League after compiling a 2.84 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP in nine starts for Class A Advanced Daytona. Six outings -- including four starts -- into his promotion, the 2014 sixth-round pick had picked up two wins but sported a 5.00 ERA. Over his previous two starts, he yielded 10 runs in 9 1/3 innings.

"Me and Danny have been talking a lot," Lopez said. "He didn't get a chance to see me in Spring Training. When I first came up here, it was kind of the first time. ... I wasn't really thinking about [the delivery] when I was out there. I just focused on making pitches and that was kind of the whole thing."
Working with catcher Joe Hudson for the first time in a start, the batterymates devised a plan to keep the ball low in the zone. The 23-year-old plunked No. 28 Reds prospect Michael Reed to start the game, but faced one over the minimum through first three innings. Lopez tossed 70 of his 94 pitches for strikes. 
"I actually felt good. I wasn't upset about hitting him," the Seton Hall product said. "Danny always talks about establishing the inner half, and if you hit him, you hit him. You're just trying to make pitches and that goes a long way. Physically, I didn't feel great, but I stayed within myself and tried not to do too much all game. I was just trying to take it pitch by pitch." 
Biloxi put Lopez to the test in the fifth when Clint Coulter singled and Dustin DeMuth was hit on a 2-0 pitch to start the frame. But the Cranbury, New Jersey native set down the next three hitters in succession by remaining calm and pitching to contact. 
"I was just trying to not get caught up in the moment," Lopez said. "Like the one inning where I had first and second, I didn't try to strike every one out. Me and Joe talked on the mound. 'If they get one run, that's it. We've got to minimize damage and just make our pitches.' Once I just trusted that and just trusted what he was doing, I just kind of went from there. Not making a big deal of the situation and just make my pitches." 
Lopez faced no such high-leverage situations the rest of the way, allowing just one baserunner to reach in the final three innings. After the 6-foot-1, 185-pound hurler retired his last eight hitters, he didn't realize he had set a personal best.
"The eighth felt as good as the first, second and every other inning." he said. "I didn't think this was the first time in the eighth or whatever it was, I was just trying to make the next pitch and the next one and the next one. I knew things would take care of themselves. Luckily, I had a good job by Joe." 

At the plate, Lopez collected his first professional hit on a single to right field to start the eighth. He didn't crush the ball to the left-field bullpen like hitting coach Gookie Dawkins jokingly instructed him to do, but Lopez was pleased with his opposite-field knock. 
"It was fun," he said with a laugh. "It was a cool thing to do with everything that was going on. My first two at-bats, I was just trying to foul pitches off, which I haven't done much in the past. I know hitting isn't my thing. As long as I get the bunt down, I'm doing my job." 
Gabriel Guerrero belted his first homer of the year and 26th-ranked Reds prospectGavin LaValley doubled in a run to support Lopez.