Through the playoffs, we’ll be featuring 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 after each round to see if it will be in contention for the GIF of the Second 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.
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Yu Darvish’s Slider – The Dodgers traded for Darvish for a stable arm in the playoffs, and Darvish game them just that, pitching over five frames and striking out seven, allowing just one ER. When Darvish is on, his Slider is public enemy #1 and the pitch made a fool of Paul Goldschmidt as its late bite pulled the pitch off the outside corner.
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Luis Severino’s Fastball – The Yankees needed a big start from Severino and after lasting just 1/3 of an inning in the Wild Card game, Severino survived a full seven, putting the Yankees in a great spot to earn a Game 5. He was hitting triple digits past his 100th pitch, getting a strikeout with 100mph heat as he painted the outside corner to Lonnie Chisenhall. I would be amped too.
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Luis Severino’s Changeup – Severino flashed his entire upside on Monday, including a Changeup with a boatload of lateral movement. Even though this pitch was a ball, its incredible fade forced us to include it in today’s roundup.
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Charlie Morton’s Fastball – Morton was solid for the Astros as they closed the door on the Red Sox. He’s added plenty of velocity in 2017 and kept his classic movement, showcasing his new talents as he earned a swing-and-a-miss from Christian Vazquez to send the Boston catcher to the dugout.
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Chris Sale’s Slider – Sale found him coming out of the pen in an effort to save the Red Sox season and his Slider was looking much better than what we saw in Game 1. While he didn’t hold up his side of the bargain, he still made some filthy pitches, like this Slider that swept across the entire plate to fan Jose Altuve.
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Trevor Bauer’s Fastball – The Indians were hoping to bottle some of the same magic they got in Game 1, but it wasn’t meant to be as Bauer was removed before the end of the second inning. However, Bauer gave it all he could, evidenced by this brilliant 98mph Fastball that blew by Aaron Judge with a ton of life for a huge whiff.
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Max Scherzer’s Changeup – Scherzer flirted with history as he held the Cubs to zero hits through his first six innings, with plenty of offerings worthy of a spot today. We loved this early Changeup to Kris Bryant that fell off the table to the former NL MVP.
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Jose Quintana’s Curveball – Quintana did his part as he battled Scherzer for the Cubs, heavily relying on his Curveball to do his dirty work. Here he got a big whiff from Bryce Harper with the hook that dove under the strike zone.
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Justin Verlander’s Fastball – It was the first relief appearance in Verlander’s career and despite allowing a HR to the first batter he faced, he limited the damage against the Red Sox. This 2-1 Fastball may have been overlooked but it earned a whiff from Rafael Devers with excellent movement at 95mph.
GIF Of The Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below and the winner will be featured in the GIF of the Second Half Contest.
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Is there any chance Darvish goes back to the American League, or do the Dodgers just pay the price to keep him?
Severino’s FB all daaaaaaay. 100mph on the black for the 107th pitch of the game? Hell yeah.
Lotta good ones in here. These are dope, as always. Gives me my daily(ish) dose of baseball even when I can’t watch the games.