Just how fierce can Jhoan Duran be on the mound?

His electric triple-digit heater is already one of the hardest pitches to square up in the sport. But what if he has one more look to layer in?

After his outing Wednesday, Duran spoke about the pitch that showed up twice during his strikeout of Tyler O’Neill, a “split-change,” as he called it.

When asked why it might help him, Duran laughed.

“I can’t tell you,” he said. “This is a secret pitch.”

Duran’s typical mix is a splitter, four-seamer, curveball and sweeper. One more option, even if it’s still in the trial stage, can’t hurt. Duran said he last threw a changeup-type pitch back in the Minors in 2021, and he hasn’t committed to bringing it back full-time.

“Maybe,” he said. “Or maybe not committed yet. Just trying it out.”

If it sticks, it’s a different layer for hitters to consider. Duran already leans heavily on his splitter against right-handed hitters, and flips the usage more toward the fastball against lefties.

It’s not news that pitchers vary their repertoire depending on a hitter’s handedness. The goal is the same: keep the overall look from getting predictable. Duran can still get predictable at times, but his power is often enough to overwhelm hitters anyway.

The idea of a fifth look makes his entrance that much tougher to game plan for, especially when the fastball sits at 100.6 mph on average.

Prospects healing up?

Rob Thomson didn’t have anything new on Aidan Miller’s back injury, outside of reiterating he’s “in the pool running,” plus a throwing program.

But Thomson did note outfield prospect Gabriel Rincones Jr. is trending toward a step forward.

“He’s going to hit outside for the first time [Friday],” Thomson said.

Rincones entered camp as one of the more intriguing bench-bat options, even before the Johan Rojas situation changed the shape of the competition.

Miller, the Phillies top ranked prospect has his locker next to Bryce Harper’s in Clearwater this season, and he’s ready to learn from the former MVP.

Rincones has some of the loudest raw power in the organization, and the production backed it up last season: he slugged 18 home runs with an .800 OPS at Triple-A Lehigh Valley. All 18 of those homers came against right-handed pitching.

During his recovery process, Rincones said he’s been leaning into a “higher-rep, lower weight” regimen as he builds back his left knee. He also noted he’s focused on improving against left-handed pitching.

Thomson’s main message on the top prospects remains consistent: get them healthy, then let the work dictate the rest, specifically for Miller.

“This is a really good player, so we’re gonna make sure he’s healthy,” Thomson said.

Painter faces 41-year-old mentor

It’s hard to put much weight on Spring Training results, but whenever Andrew Painter takes the ball, the attention follows.

His next start will come Saturday at BayCare Ballpark against the Blue Jays — with Max Scherzer slated to start for Toronto. The two are 19 years apart.

Painter knows Scherzer well. They’ve worked out together in the offseason for the past four years in Florida, and Saturday’s matchup will give Painter another big-league look as he continues building toward a possible Opening Day roster spot.

Jesús Luzardo joined Spencer McKercher and Sean Kane on the Phillies Talk Podcast and discussed the upside of top pitching prospect Andrew Painter.

Painter said he’s looking to work on his changeup in that outing, noting the two he threw in his two scoreless innings against the Yankees were “uncompetitive.”

He has the big-league repertoire, but it begins with command. If Painter continues getting ahead, he threw four first-pitch strikes to six hitters in his last outing, everything else plays up.

Phillies get after the WBC

It’s a busy day across the World Baseball Classic.

Cristopher Sánchez is scheduled to start for the Dominican Republic in their first pool-play game against Nicaragua. Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber will face Brazil, and it’s still unclear when Team USA will use Brad Keller out of the bullpen.

Stay tuned — and follow the Phillies’ representatives all tournament long.