JJ keeping hitters off balance

MLB.com reports Blue Jays starting pitcher Josh Johnson heads into 2013 with a better understanding of how to keep hitters off balance by using an improved repertoire, which includes a polished curveball. "I learned how to pitch," Johnson said of his experience in 2012 with the Marlins. "Sometimes I could get by with just throwing, blowing it by guys. Now I locate a lot better or slow him down to get the ball by him and miss bats." Johnson threw a curveball when he was drafted in 2004, but it was quickly scrapped in favor of a slider. Johnson only began to throw a curveball again last spring and it didn't become a reliable option until a third of the way through last season. "I was out there and it would be good for one and then terrible for three, good for two, terrible for four, things like that," Johnson said. "All of a sudden I started throwing it for strikes and then I wouldn't use it enough. Then I started using it more, more, more and that's when I started getting the hang of it."