Every morning we review the nastiest 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 First Half Contest. 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.
Corey Kluber’s Slider – Kluber has had trouble in April previously, and 2017 was no exception. Ineffectiveness and then a DL trip seem par for the course for Kluber, but he was back to the top of his game last night. This Slider to Mark Canha looks like a Fastball heading toward the outside corner before falling off way into the opposite batter’s box. Sick pitch. (Thanks to @strombergbt and Redditor No32 for the tip!)
Danny Salazar’s Changeup – Salazar has lost his spot in the rotation in the Indians rotation, but it’s possible that’s good for our GIF purposes as his stuff would seem to play up in the bullpen. This Changeup has great tumbling action that Ryon Healy swings over the top of. (Thanks to @34bigcheese for the tip!)
Zack Greinke’s Eephus – Jeff Locke could have taken three swings in the time it takes for this pitch to reach the plate. The Eephus is a site behold from Zack Greinke, and it seems like Greinke is incorporating it into his arsenal more frequently. That’s good news for us and bad news for hitters.
Jharel Cotton’s Changeup – Cotton is having trouble consistently throwing strikes and getting out lefties, but his Changeup is still a sight to behold for our GIF purposes. This pitch to Bradley Zimmer goes from his waist down to the ground in about 30 feet for the swinging K.
Fernando Abad’s Eephus – My favorite part of this GIF is the wry smile from Jonathan Schoop after he realizes he’s just been eephused. Fernando Abad was in a tough spot in the 8th inning last night and pulled the 60 MPH Eephus out of his back pocket for the big strikeout.
Keynan Middleton’s Slider – Middleton’s Slider reminds me of Alex Colome’s Slider with it’s crazy almost straight drop down. This pitch to Byron Buxton is also noteworthy for how far away Buxton’s bat is from the ball while swinging.
GIF Of The Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below and the winner will be featured in the GIF of the First Half Contest.
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