SAN DIEGO — When he first got the call to the majors last year, Diamondbacks right-hander Justin Martinez soon noticed the difference. No matter how hard he threw it, his triple-digit fastball was getting turned around by big league hitters.

“I realized,” Martinez said through an interpreter, “I was going to need something else.”

Martinez did what many other pitchers around the game have done over the past couple of seasons: He added a sinker, a sort of turn-back-the-clock pitch that is beginning to make a comeback.

Generally speaking, there are two types of primary fastballs pitchers will throw. There is the standard fastball known as the four-seamer, a pitch geared for velocity. Then there is the two-seamer — also known as the sinker — an offering that traditionally sacrifices a touch of velocity in exchange for movement, sometimes straight down, sometimes toward the pitcher’s arm side, and occasionally in both directions.

Diamondbacks right-hander Brandon Pfaadt picked up a sinker last year and believes it helped turn around his rookie season. Mets right-hander Luis Severino added one this year and is enjoying a bounceback season. Even Pirates phenom Paul Skenes is throwing 100-plus mph fastballs that move like sinkers.

In 2008, when pitch-tracking data became available, 41.1 percent of fastballs were sinkers. But as hitters began to alter their swings in order to lift and launch, pitchers adjusted their strategy, peppering the top of the zone with four-seamers. By 2021, only 30.1 percent of fastballs were two-seamers.

But over the past few years, as hitters have learned to hit high heaters, pitchers — always one step ahead since they control the action — have begun to turn the tables again. This year, 34.3 percent of fastballs are sinkers.

Put another way: Of the 341 pitchers who have thrown at least 20 innings this season, nearly two-thirds have thrown a sinker at least five percent of the time. In 2021, only 55 percent of pitchers who logged 60 innings threw a sinker five percent of the time.

“I’m never surprised when the pitching industry makes an adjustment to what hitters are trying to do or (finds) some inefficiency in the market and they try to exploit it,” Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said. “I honestly didn’t think it would come this quick; I thought it would be a little bit longer before it became this widespread. But it doesn’t surprise me.”

Giants right-hander Logan Webb, whose success helped spearhead the comeback of the sinker the past few seasons, offered other reason for its increased usage: the crackdown on “sticky stuff.” In 2021, the league began enforcing a ban on foreign substances that helped pitchers grip the ball better and generate massive spin on four-seamers.

“I think everyone saw it coming,” he said. “You take away some sticky stuff, you realize the ball doesn’t (move as much). … I think once you take away the spin, you’ve got to mix your pitches different.”

The best sinker in Diamondbacks history

For the Diamondbacks, the sinker has a notable place in their history.

Shortly after he was drafted in the eighth round in 2000, right-hander Brandon Webb threw a bullpen session in front of a Diamondbacks minor league coach named Royal Clayton. Webb threw a four-seam fastball in the low 90s. He had a curveball. He was relatively ordinary. But when he threw a two-seamer, Clayton took notice.

“He goes, ‘Hey, that looks pretty good. Let’s work on that in spring training next year,’” recalled Webb, who is not related to Logan Webb.

It became one of the more dominant pitches of an era. For parts of seven seasons, Webb occupied a spot in the Diamondbacks' rotation and overpowered hitters with his two-seamer. He won the National League Cy Young Award in 2006, then finished runner-up in 2007 and 2008. He was never the same after hurting his shoulder in 2009.

Now an analyst on the Diamondbacks' broadcasts, Webb has begun to notice more two-seamers popping up, but what has struck him as most interesting is the pitchers who are throwing them.

“The last couple of years it’s mainly, it’s these hard throwers and they’re getting really good movement,” he said. “I don’t know why you wouldn’t want more movement. It’s so much harder to square up.”

Hall of Famer Greg Maddux was a master of the “comeback fastball,” a sinker that would appear to be headed inside on a left-handed batter only to make a sharp right turn just in time to catch the inside corner. But while Maddux often was throwing it at 88-90 mph, today’s pitchers are pumping them in the mid-to-upper 90s.

Martinez is a perfect example. On Tuesday night, he threw four consecutive two-seamers to the Giants’ Matt Chapman, freezing him for Strike 3 on a pitch that looked like it might veer off the plate away but instead tailed back.

“It’s impressive to watch,” Logan Webb said. “You see guys who hadn’t thrown sinkers in the past that are throwing sinkers now that are 97-99. It’s crazy to see. And as a two-seam guy, I like seeing it.”

Inducing contact has always been a feature of the sinker, a pitch that tends to generate ground balls. But power pitchers like Mariners closer Andres Munoz and Pirates setup man Aroldis Chapman rack up whiffs on the pitch.

More sinkers, better sinkers across baseball

It is not just that there are more sinkers; they also seem to be getting better. A few years ago, only 13.1 percent of two-seamers generated more than 18 inches of arm-side movement, per data available at Baseball Savant. This year, that is up to 15.6 percent.

“I think we understand the sinker a little bit better and we understand how to throw it with all the slow-motion cameras and technology,” Hefner said. “We understand what actually makes a good sinker. That’s why I think you’re seeing more and more.”

Not that long ago, pitchers had to experiment with grips or release points in a bullpen session, then take the pitch into a game to get feedback from hitters. Now, the cameras and pitch-tracking devices provide instantaneous feedback, giving a pitcher granular information to allow them to refine a pitch.

“It really does give quick insight as to which pitch we should pursue,” said Diamondbacks assistant pitching coach Dan Carlson, noting that the data can help steer a pitcher away from an offering that might get hit hard. “You can also compare your pitch to those of other pitchers. It’s like, ‘Yeah, this (sinker moves) exactly like his.’”

Martinez found out quickly that opposing hitters could handle his hard four-seamer. Last year, they hit .439 with a .731 slugging off the pitch, which he threw at an average of 100.6 mph. His sinker has been far more effective this year, and it has allowed his devastating secondary pitches — he has a splitter and a slider — to generate huge whiff rates.

Pfaadt, the Diamondbacks’ second-year starter, figured out last year he needed another wrinkle. He had thrown two-seamers before but only rarely and decided to put more emphasis on the pitch. The more he threw it — whether while playing catch, throwing sides or in games — the better it got.

It has become an integral part of his repertoire, and he has become adept at throwing it to both sides of the plate, going in with it to both lefties and righties. The pitch gave Pfaadt another way to attack a hitter’s weaknesses, another pitch to keep hitters off his slider and four-seamer.

“Right when I started throwing it, it was like, that was the one pitch that, if I executed it inside to a righty, it was safe,” Pfaadt said. “If anything, it was a hard ground ball. Nothing in the air too much.”

Pfaadt has noticed he is not alone; he has seen the trend across baseball of other pitchers turning to the sinker, as well. He wonders if more will do the same.

“Maybe we’re right in the middle of the change right now,” he said. “It’s kind of evolving. I’m curious where it’s going to go.”

Friday’s Diamondbacks-Padres pitching matchup

Diamondbacks at Padres, 6:40 p.m., Cox, Ch. 34

Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (2-4, 4.32) vs. Padres RHP Michael King (4-4, 3.82).

At Chase Field: Pfaadt gave up four runs in six innings in a no-decision against the Mets last weekend at Citi Field. … It was the second start in a row in which he gave up four runs, following his six-inning outing against the Rangers in Texas. … Pfaadt has faced the Padres three times in his career, posting a 2.89 ERA in 18⅔ innings. He fired seven scoreless innings against them at Petco Park last year. … King was acquired as part of the package that sent OF Juan Soto to the New York Yankees. … He has given up one earned run in each of his past two outings, working 12 innings with three walks and 11 strikeouts. … He faced the Diamondbacks on May 4, logging six scoreless innings. … King throws his fastballs in the 92-93 mph range while getting most of his swing-and-miss on change-ups and sweepers.

Coming up

Saturday: At San Diego, 5:40 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Ryne Nelson (3-4, 5.44) vs. Padres RHP Matt Waldron (3-5, 3.98).

Sunday: At San Diego, 1:10 p.m., Diamondbacks TBA vs. Padres RHP Adam Mazur (0-0, 1.50).

Monday: Off.

Tuesday: At Chase Field, 6:40 p.m., Diamondbacks LHP Jordan Montgomery (3-4, 6.80) vs. Angels TBA.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Diamondbacks pitchers bringing back old-school pitch, reaping results