Every morning we review the five best pitches from the previous day’s games in glorious HD GIFs. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite pitch and check back this weekend to see if it will be in contention for the “GIF of the Week”. Did we miss your favorite pitch? Send us a tweet next time @ThePitcherList and we’ll GIF it up + give you a shoutout here in the article.
Blake Treinen’s Slider – The Nationals reliever made a splash during spring training and while he’s bit a little shaky during the year, he still holds an excellent 10.15 K/9 this year. He struck out the side in his appearance during Monday’s game and made Brandon Phillips frustrated with this nasty Slider. (Thanks to @SethFriederman for the tip!)
Jon Lester’s Fastball – Lester had a no-hit bid broken up in the seventh inning, where he allowed two unearned runs en route to an undeserving loss. Through the evening he was spotting up beautifully, like this 0-2 Fastball that just gets the outside corner.
Dallas Keuchel’s Slider – While it wasn’t a complete game shutout like we are used to from the Astros ace, Keuchel still collected eight Ks in only six innings of work. Here he stuns Michael Brantley with a Slider that spins back over the plate. (Yes, we think it should be called a Curveball too, but Pitch f/x disagrees)
James Shields‘ Fastball – Being among the league leaders in strikeouts is nothing new to Shields, and he’s back in familiar territory with 126 Ks across his first 18 games of the year. Neil Walker was one of his latest victims with this Two-Seamer that curls back over the plate for the backwards K.
Chris Sale’s Fastball – Despite going the distance against the Blue Jays, Sale only accrued six punchouts – a shocking end to his double-digit strikeout streak. Regardless, Sale was dominant and still throwing heat in the 9th inning, like this burning 98 MPH in on the hands to Jose Bautista that simply overpowers the former HR champ.
GIF Of The Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below and the winner will be featured in this weekend’s “GIF of the Week” contest.
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