The blazing fastball that was supposed to be his ticket to the major leagues is a thing of the past. But knuckleballer supreme Steven Wright’s relationship with a Hawaii family remains an important part of his life as he now enjoys the greatest success of his pro baseball career.
The Boston Red Sox right-hander who starred at the University of Hawaii 10 years ago still exchanges texts and talks a couple of times a month with Bob and Tara Oda of Hawaii Kai — the folks he rented a room from his final year at UH, but who were much more than landlords.
“Our house has always been open to hanai kids,” said Bob Oda. “The distractions of the dorms were too much and he wanted to focus on school and training. Our place was kind of a refuge for him.”
When he was a freshman, Wright’s roommate, Matt Buck, was asked to dinner at the Oda home by a friend of a friend and Wright tagged along. They were invited to come back to do laundry or use the pool or for a quiet place to study.
Wright took them up on it and gradually became part of the family. He said the Oda ohana taught him the aloha spirit.
“You’ve got a lot of people caring for you and you’re caring for a lot of people. And I think that just really opened my eyes,” he said.
According to Bob Oda, Wright was already on the right track, spiritually and in the way he treated others.
“Very mature beyond his years, zeroed in on his career. Can’t say all-study, no-play, he was very easy to talk to,” Oda said. “He will talk your head off if you give him a chance. He had a surrogate family. I think it helped him stay focused on his objective.”
This offseason (some of it spent training in Hawaii while visiting the Odas) the objective was improving a special pitch.
No, not the knuckleball — although that is still his main weapon.
Wright drastically improved his curveball in the offseason.
It’s contributed to the 1.52 ERA that has him among the hottest pitchers in the majors. Wright, scheduled to start today against the Houston Astros, evened his record at 3-3 Sunday with a 5-1 victory over the New York Yankees. It was Wright’s first complete game, and came in his 17th career start; he had a shutout going until Brett Gardner hit a two-out solo homer in the ninth inning.
The win-loss record is deceiving since Wright has pitched at least six innings in all six starts and not allowed more than two runs in any of them.
“The curve has been a big pitch for me this year,” Wright said in a phone interview this week. “I throw it for a strike, and it’s a change-of-speed because it’s actually slower than the knuckleball. Working with Wake (Tim Wakefield) on it made me more confident. Like any pitcher, it’s repeating the delivery, a consistent release.”
Wright also still spots his fastball, and does a lot of things the same way as conventional pitchers.
Make no mistake, though, it’s the knuckler that saved Wright’s pro career after the second-round draft pick of the Cleveland Indians stopped progressing quickly through the farm system and was traded to the Red Sox.
Wright’s career path has been about as predictable as one of his fluttering, no-spin pitches. Up-and-down, in-and-out with no discernible pattern. Baffling. And, finally, fulfilling.
“I got to the point of not being on the prospect list and being an organizational player,” Wright said. “It helped me grow up. I realized it’s a a short window that you get to play this game. That kept me even-keeled, and with learning the pitch.”
Wakefield’s success as a knuckleball pitcher for the Red Sox helped Wright. He also received tutoring from Charlie Hough and Tom Candiotti; they, too, enjoyed long careers thanks to the exotic pitch many hurlers have fooled around with but very few have mastered.
“The thing they all stress is it’s about repetitions,” said Wright, who started to seriously learn the knuckleball in 2011. “A lot of people can throw it on the side. But knowing how to do it in game situations, with runners on base, different conditions … I’m still learning. Every year you take from the positives and remember the failures, too, and learn from both.”
Wright is 31, an age when most pitchers are either done or on the decline. Knuckleballers are a different breed. Generally, as is the case with Wright, they are late-bloomers.
“It’s not as stressful on the body, but you’re still putting your body under a lot of stress,” Wright said. “It prolongs careers because for just about all of us, it’s a pitch we develop out of desperation. Everyone has a similar story. You can pitch into your 40s because you started it in your late 20s or early 30s. It’s one pitch where velocity doesn’t matter.”
Whether that career ends today or 10 years from now, Steven Wright will always have family in Hawaii.
“Even in the minor leagues, he never gave up on the dream and was always grateful for his opportunities,” Bob Oda said. “The knuckleball was a challenge for him, and he put a lot of time into perfecting the curveball, too.”
Then he chuckled as he remembered a line from when his hanai son was the UH ace.
“Friday night, must be Wright.”
Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at Hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quickreads.
