David Ross sauntered out to the mound in the 9th inning and pulled his All-Star closer, Craig Kimbrel, after just three batters and a two-run lead.

Kimbrel’s 2020 is off to a rocky start. He has faced 14 batters and only retired 5, but pitching coach Tommy Hottovy and Kimbrel himself are committed to righting the ship and it starts with mechanics. 

“The goal with everybody we work with is just consistency,” Hottovy said before Wednesday’s game. “Consistency in mechanics, consistency in delivery and where your release points are.”

The vertical release point of Kimbrel’s fastball has fallen roughly four inches when compared to 2018 and 2019, according to Brooks Baseball. The result has been a fastball with slightly less vertical movement — a pitch characteristic that can lead to more effective fastballs — despite stable velocity.

Marquee Sports Network analyst and former Cubs pitcher, Sean Marshall, experienced similar issues with a falling release point in his career as he aged. While it led to periods of struggles, he was able to correct it and finish with over 600 career innings and a sub-4.00 ERA.

“Bring that arm up, it’s going to allow the ball to have more finish, more life through the zone,” Marshall said. “Four inches of drop is enough to make a difference.”

But Marshall also saw flashes of good in Kimbrel’s 11 pitches in Tuesday night’s outing.

Kimbrel’s four-pitch strikeout of Franchy Cordero featured two curveballs called for strikes and one of the better fastballs Kimbrel has thrown this season — 97-mph gas that appeared to rise up and out of the zone.

For Marshall, the key is Kimbrel throwing his curveball for strikes, which makes hitters more susceptible to velocity up in the zone. Kimbrel’s approach to Cordero was a textbook example of this point.

Kimbrel’s velocity is still intact, his fastball still has occasional life and the metrics on his curveball are trending in the right direction, according to Hottovy. The framework of a lock-down closer for a division-leading team is still there, but the details that have prevented a smooth start to the season are soon to be addressed. 

“All I’m really worried about right now,” Kimbrel said prior to Wednesday’s game, “is figuring out how to get rid of [my bad mechanical habits].”