Hot Rods pitcher Taylor Hawkins throws a knuckleball during their loss to Lansing on Friday, April 15, 2016, at Bowling Green Ballpark. (Austin Anthony/photo@bgdailynews.com)

Taylor Hawkins figured his professional path was as a catcher.

A 12th-round pick out of Carl Albert High School in Midwest City, Okla., Hawkins made a name for himself hitting a school-record 74 homers in his high school career.

But Hawkins’ path changed last May, when he decided to mess around with an old pitch his brother taught him when he was around 8 or 9 years old – the knuckleball.

That fateful day led to a change in career paths with Hawkins now a converted pitcher, going from a long man in the bullpen to part of the Bowling Green Hot Rods’ rotation.

Hawkins said he is enjoying the conversion, trying to harness a pitch that even those who have made it to the majors have said is very difficult to master.

Hawkins said when his brother taught him how to throw the knuckleball, it wasn’t very good because his hands were too small. Still, while he was having success at the plate as a hitter, he always kept a fascination with throwing the knuckleball.

“It just kind of stuck with me ever since,” Hawkins said. “It just got better and better and better. It’s kind of something that whenever we are warming up on the field, every day I would throw a couple on the field at the end. Hopefully the coaches wouldn’t see and I would get in trouble.”

Bowling Green pitching coach Bill Moloney saw it one day during batting practice last season and the wheels began to spin to take Hawkins from behind the plate to on the mound.

Hawkins threw a bullpen and then was sent down to Low A short-season Hudson Valley (N.Y.), where he threw one inning.

On January 1, the Rays called Hawkins to tell him that after 118 professional games as a catcher they wanted the 22-year-old to become a full-time pitcher.

“I was actually shocked after I got the call,” Hawkins said. “I didn’t think that (after) one inning, they want me to become a pitcher full time. As I started to think about it, I was really excited about it. I thought it would be a really good new opportunity for me.”

Hawkins got a chance to work with former knuckleballer Charlie Haeger, who was hired as minor league pitching coordinator a few days later and changed his offseason conditioning – running more and doing exercises to help his arm strength.

“I never thought this was going to be a possibility,” Hawkins said. “In spring training me and Jeff Howell (pitching for High A Port Charlotte) had a really good relationship there. We threw every day together, did everything together and we both helped each other on what worked best for us. I think just picking each other’s brains has been money for us.”

Hawkins earned a spot on Bowling Green’s opening day roster, but his pitching career got off to a rocky start.

He allowed three runs in two innings in his debut against Dayton (Ohio) on April 9, then took the loss in South Bend (Ind.) on Apr. 12 when he walked three and hit a batter to force in the winning run. Through his first six outings, he had a 7.59 ERA.

“It was hard,” Hawkins said. “Technically I have only been throwing it for a couple of months now. I started in spring training, so weather was not really a factor there. I came here and my first outing in Dayton, it was snowing. I didn’t really know how to adjust to the cold weather and how to grip it. Towards the end of the cold weather we started to figure it out and started adjusting a lot better.”

He said was able to work on some delivery mechanics with Haeger, which was the turning point. The next outing he allowed one unearned run in four innings against Clinton (Iowa) on April 28. The next three outings, he didn’t allow a run.

“All you need is one good outing to build some confidence and he had that,” Moloney said. “I really think the weather early on affected him. He wasn’t used to pitching, number one, and he wasn’t used to pitching in the cold weather, number two. Once it warmed up a little bit and he had a couple of good outings, you could see the confidence building.”

Hawkins moved to the rotation on May 13 and has made four starts since, the latest coming in Lake County on May 31.

“I liked the bullpen, but when I got the call (to join the rotation) I was really excited,” Hawkins said. “I didn’t really know what I was getting into at first. The running days were a little longer. Other than that, I just like being able to help the team a lot more. I just want to help out as much as I can.”

While Hawkins continues to rely on the knuckleball, he is also showing the ability to work in other pitches too. Hawkins often mixes in a fastball and curveball – the curveball is what he credits to his success in the Clinton outing.

“The mix-up is huge for keeping the hitters off balance,” Hawkins said. “I talked to all the pitching coaches, picked their heads a little bit just to see what we can work with. So far I think we have done a pretty good job.”

Moloney agrees, saying he likes what he has seen from Hawkins so far with his ability to be more than just a guy who throws a knuckleball.

“It helps to be throwing 86 miles an hour with his fastball,” Maloney said. “He can get over a curveball every now and then when he wants to. So I think that just gives him a little more confidence with the knuckleball that if he is struggling with the command he has something else he can go to.”

Moloney said that with the weapons he has, Hawkins has the tools to be successful – adding he could envision even more success if Hawkins can learn another pitch to go with what he already throws.

“It’s like any other pitcher, it’s consistency,” Maloney said. “If he can throw his knuckleball consistently down in the zone as he has been, who knows? To me, just the consistency of throwing a strike with the knuckleball or throwing a ball when you want to expand the zone. If he can do that, then he will just keep moving.”

Hawkins said he’s eager to see what the future holds for him on the mound.

“I’m so ready to see where this can go,” Hawkins said. “I’m ready to keep working as much as I can to see how good this can be.”

Hot Rods take finale in Lake County

The Bowling Green Hot Rods avoided the sweep at Lake County (Ohio) with an 8-1 win on Thursday.

Brett Sullivan hit his ninth home run of the season and drove in two runs, while Michael Russell had three hits and an RBI for Bowling Green (27-26). Angel Moreno also had three hits, while Joe McCarthy, David Rodriguez, and Jacob Cronenworth finished with two hits each.

Genesis Cabrera (5-2) earned the win, allowing one run and three hits with six strikeouts in six innings. Armando Bastardo picked up his first save of the season with three scoreless innings.

Bowling Green will open a three-game series at Lansing (Mich.) at 6:05 p.m. CDT on Friday.

— Follow Bowling Green Hot Rods reporter Micheal Compton on Twitter @mcompton428 or visit bgdailynews.com.