Booty tosses first bullpen session

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Josh Booty threw his first bullpen session in D-backs camp Saturday morning under the watchful eyes of pitching coach Charles Nagy and former big leaguer Tom Candiotti.

Booty joined the D-backs as a non-roster invitee Friday after winning MLB Network's "The Next Knuckler" competition.

"To have Tom Candiotti and Nagy both looking over my shoulder and working with me, that's invaluable to me," Booty said. "At this point, I'm just trying to get better and better and better. I feel like my arm strength is coming back, because when we did the show I had only thrown a couple of times before it and I didn't really have my strength."

Booty has been working playing long toss and trying to perfect his mechanics. Manager Kirk Gibson also had him working on his pickoff move Friday.

Getting a feel for the knuckleball, which he didn't really throw until being a participant in the show is a work in progress.

"I probably throw half of them right and then another half are out of the strike zone, so I have to really hone them in," he said. "A lot of it is just getting comfortable with the grip. I've changed it a little bit since the show."