CLEARWATER, Fla. -- The slider didn’t draw a swing from J.T. Realmuto, but it made the ensuing 91 mph fastball that followed from Jordan Zimmermann more effective, freezing the new Phillies catcher for a called third strike.

It was Zimmermann’s fourth strikeout in five batters, and the only strikeout that wasn’t directly on the slider. But it was the mix that stood out over two perfect innings in the split-squad Tigers' 12-7 loss Monday afternoon. In his first start of the spring, a game when pitchers might normally focus on a fastball and a secondary pitch, Zimmermann threw four different pitches. He threw his changeup, a pitch that didn’t exist for him a few years ago, for a third of his pitches. He started off two batters with curveballs for called strikes, reviving a pitch that was nasty for him for a two-month stretch last year.

After three seasons of struggles in Detroit, this is how Zimmermann needs to pitch at this point of his career.

“Yeah, I used to be, I guess, a power pitcher -- fastball, slider and occasional curveball,” he said. “Now over the years I’ve had to learn I don’t have the mid-90s fastball anymore. I have to get a little more creative. As you get older you supposedly get wiser, so I’m going with that route.

“... I’m a realist. What I see is what I have. So I’ve accepted it. There’s a lot of guys that used to be power pitchers that aren’t anymore, and they’re doing just fine still. The game’s about adjustments. You make a few adjustments along the way and keep on pitching.”

Just as important, he’s healthy enough this spring to work on the transition. He isn’t worrying about his back and his neck, or trying to time a nerve-block injection so that he can miss as little time as possible. He isn’t feeling any ill effects from the core muscle surgery he underwent last October.

Instead, Zimmermann is trying to correct bad habits he developed when he was nursing aches and pains, like where he positions his hands when he begins his delivery. He’s tinkering with grips on pitches, like spreading his fingers on his slider and picking up tips from new teammate Matt Moore on how to throw his changeup.

“Mechanics feel good and feel normal, the way I’ve always thrown,” he said. “So now it’s just tinkering with the ball on a few grips. But the grips right now are great. Now I just need to figure out how to slow the changeup.”

Zimmermann knew this stage was coming. He has been relying less on his fastball with each season since 2014, according to Statcast. By comparison, the slider was a sneaky effective pitch for Zimmermann last year, which is probably why he used it more in 2018 than he had in any other season. Opposing hitters batted just .206 off his slider with a 27.5 percent whiff rate, according to Statcast. Only his curveball had a better rate of swings and misses.

Zimmermann had a good mix of pitches going for much of the first half last season, save for the changeup. He entered the All-Star break with a 4-1 record, 3.71 ERA, 5.55 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 8.7 strikeouts per nine innings. He went 3-7 with a 5.27 ERA in the second half, a downturn that coincided with the core muscle issues.

He hopes his health allows him to not only get back to his first-half mix from last year, but build off it. It’s not enough to develop the mix of pitches. He needs to be precise with it.

“You have to locate a little better,” he said. “When I was throwing harder, I would just think outside-third of the plate. Now I have to think corner or off. Or, [instead of] inside-third, now I have to think corner, off or get way in there. You just have to move a little farther out. You have to be, I guess, more perfect than when I was throwing harder.”

With his 33rd birthday coming in May, Zimmermann is a pitcher in transition. With two seasons left on a five-year contract, he’s a constant in the rebuilding Tigers rotation. Moore and Tyson Ross are one-year signings, while Michael Fulmer and Matthew Boyd are potential trade pieces for prospects if they continue development. Zimmermann could find himself in the latter group, too. But for now, he’s focused on pitching.

Asked if it’s back to basics for him this spring, Zimmermann cracks a smile.

“That’s just what I do in life in general,” he said. “I’m pretty basic.”