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. 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.
Dylan Bundy’s Slider – We’ve been waiting through the spring to see Bundy’s new pitch in action, and while its previous Cutter label was misguided, the end product is just what we were looking for. He turned to the pitch early and often, here getting slugger Josh Donaldson to lose his bat chasing the pitch for the second out of the game.
Edwin Diaz’s Sliders/Fastball – This is how you pitch. After getting down 1-0, Diaz hit Carlos Correa with a pair of knee-high Sliders on both sides of the plate at 87/88mph, then zoomed 99mph heat on the black that froze the star shortstop in his shoes. Simply beautiful. (Thanks to @NoteboomPO4 for the tip!)
James Paxton’s Curveball – Paxton’s 2017 debut left off where 2016 ended, featuring velocity well north of 95 and fantastic secondary pitches to carve up the Astros lineup. Paxton needed a big out in the third inning to Jose Altuve and got the second baseman to swing right over this 3-2 hook for the well deserved strikeout.
Chris Sale’s Slider – Those that were worried about Sale heading to Fenway park may have had their fears quelled after last night’s impressive performance. I personally am excited about the change of scenery as the flexible southpaw now has one of the best camera angles for left-handers in the MLB, allowing us to get excellent views of this deadly Slider like in the GIF above.
Jameson Taillon’s Curveball – Despite faceing one the best offenses in the majors and forced to matchup with the perennial Cy Young candidate Chris Sale, Taillon held his ground and put up seven shutout innings for the Pirates. His 96/97 Fastball sets a great foundation that allows batters to flail helplessly at this crazy good hook, which will be getting whiffs all season long.
Blake Treinen’s Fastball – I get the feeling we will be featuring plenty of Treinen this season, but after highlighting his Slider from Monday’s game, Treinen continued to impress us with the rest of his arsenal. First was a 98mph heater to Ichiro Suzuki, who couldn’t handle the late life that brought the lively pitch back to the plate at the final moment.
Blake Treinen’s Changeup – It wouldn’t be fair to leave out the final pitch of this game for the sake of avoiding a repeat GIF from the same pitcher as Treinen – out of nowhere – whipped out this Changeup to Christian Yelich that freaked us all out. Treinen has two elite pitches already with his Fastball and Slider, but now batters need to consider this absurd filth at sub 90mph as well. Simply not fair.
Garrett Richards‘ Slider – Richards gave us a scare after leaving the game in the fifth inning in what was assumed to be an injury related to his elbow, but he seems to be okay with just a “bicep cramp”. Before his exit, Richards was looking all kinds of beautiful, featuring elite velocity on both his Fastballs and Slider, including 91mph with great drop on this slide piece to Ryon Healy.
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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