PORT NECHES — Heavy is the ball that leaves Aaron Graham’s hand.

It didn’t always happen that way for the Port Neches-Groves senior right-hander, with the baseball darting down and in as it approaches the plate. It took a little help and a drop of his arm.

“I developed (the sinker) in high school,” Graham said. “I’ve been playing with Allen Harrington. He played for Lamar and he’s been helping me in my pitching lessons. I still throw a four-seam, but I’ve got a lot of downward movement.”

Pitching is as much a learned habit as it is instinctual. In that, it’s very much like a golf swing. Guys on the mound can constantly tinker here or there to get different results.

For Graham, that tinkering at the hands of former Lamar and PN-G pitcher Allen Harrington ended up with his arm dropping down to more of a three-quarters motion. With his arm’s move down and to the side, his ball dropped too.

“I dropped my arm angle a little,” Graham said. “I used to be over the top, but I had elbow problems with that. It helped the ball move a little more and slide a little down. It tails in on right-handers now and away from lefties. Left-handers usually just swing and miss at it.”

Call him a ground ball specialist or a sinkerballer, but the one thing that’s certain is Graham was made to pitch for this particular PN-G team. With a great infield defense that works as a well-oiled machine, Graham can pitch to contact and induce those grounders to the left side all game long, knowing his teammates will make plays and keep the game rolling.

“I just try to pound the strike zone and hit my corners,” Graham said. “If I get 0-2, I try to finish them off. If not, they can hit grounders to the defense and my teammates will make plays all day.”

Both Graham’s four-seam and two-seam fastballs have good downward movement on them, but he also has a big bending curveball he can snap off effectively at the bottom of the zone. It’s not a pure 12-6 curve, but it is a very effective pitch when Graham is feeling it.

The problem is, as most curveball pitchers know, that “feel” isn’t always there. It’s hard for Graham to explain exactly what goes into his curve working or not, but he certainly knows it when he’s on the mound.

“I have to throw it a bunch,” Graham said. “I have to get used to the pressure on my fingers to be able to get it every game. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t. It’s hard to explain. It’s just a feel thing.”

He was feeling pretty good overall in the first game of a bidistrict series against Baytown Lee at Lamar’s Vincent Beck Stadium. Graham threw a complete game shutout, allowing just two hits and one walk while striking out six. That game was special for Graham in a lot of ways.

“It was exciting,” Graham said. “I’ve dreamed about playing in the playoffs and at a college stadium my whole life. It was thrilling.”

As good as he is on the mound, Graham is also a force at the plate for the Indians. The big right-hander usually bats cleanup and has plenty of gap power. However, he’s also surprised this season with his speed. Against LC-M, he beat out two infield hits, hustling his way on base like a leadoff hitter.

“A little hustle helps,” Graham said. “Being a bigger guy, to get those little dribbler hits and to beat them out feels good. I just like to hit the ball. If it’s outside, I’ll go with it. If it’s inside, I’ll try to pull it. It’s always fun, because we always have men on base and it’s fun to hit them in.”