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Barry Zito ditches the new delivery

Barry Zito

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Barry Zito throws to the Arizona Diamondbacks during the third inning of a spring training baseball game Tuesday, March 20, 2012, in Scottsdale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

AP

It’s starting to feel like a rite of spring: Barry Zito shows up with a new delivery he was working on in the offseason, only to ditch it on the advice of Giants coaches.

Zito arrived this year with a new crouched over stance on the mound. I’ll let Andrew Baggarly take it from here:

Zito, who is still owed $46 million, attempted to mimic Tim Lincecum’s delivery during an offseason working with noted pitching guru Tom House. But observers both inside and outside the Giants organization tell me that Zito doesn’t have the arm speed or athleticism to pull off that delivery. Zito’s arm drags behind his body as he plants his front foot, leading to hittable pitches at the belt.

The end results bared that out: Zito had a 7.91 ERA in five spring starts. He allowed 32 hits, including five homers, in 19 1/3 innings.

The plan is for Zito to use his old delivery in a minor league start Wednesday. He’s still slated to be the Giants’ fifth starter this season, though if he has a rough April, the team could turn to youngster Eric Surkamp. After a solid 2010 season, Zito went 3-4 with a 5.87 ERA during an injury-riddled 2011 campaign.