Cardinals' Michael Wacha: Adds two pitches to in-game repertoire

Wacha debuted a cutter and curveball during his four-inning start in a 7-3 Grapefruit League loss to the Marlins on Saturday, Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

He wasn't entirely successful -- the right-hander allowed four earned runs on six hits, a walk and a wild pitch -- but he also recorded four strikeouts, all over 68 pitches. Pitching coach Mike Maddux has been overseeing the expansion of Wacha's arsenal from two to four pitches, as he's primarily relied on fastballs and changeups to date in his career. While he was touched up for a solo home run by the pinch-hitting Isan Diaz and a pair of run-scoring singles, Maddux feels the rollout of the new offerings was still a net positive and that Wacha just needs more experience incorporating the new pitches. "The damage was done via the well-placed balls," said Maddux. "There were a lot of groundballs that went through (the infield) and a blooper. Overall, four pitches he threw for strikes. By adding those pitches, he might have lost his sharpness on the others. It just comes with touches."