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 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.
Chris Archer’s Slider – Archer’s Slider is one of the best in the game because of it’s velocity and sudden late movement. This inside Slider to Miguel Montero shows just how unhittable Archer’s Slider is when it’s sharp. Late break at 90 MPH is hard to hold up on.
Corey Knebel’s Curveball – Knebel threw three hard breaking Curveballs to Buster Posey, and this last one to end the game is a beauty. Knebel’s Curveball has a huge hump in it, and is a big reason he’s broken out in 2017 as a upper echelon closer. (Thanks to @TheJKayKid for the tip!)
Kenely Jansens’s Slider – Jansen doesn’t use his Slider a ton, probably because his Cutter has so much movement in the low nineties, but Jansen has a good one in his back pocket as Starling Marte certainly knows now. Sharp like a knife.
Doug Fister’s Fastball – Fister used pristine command and movement to complete a one hitter last night in a fill in start for David Price. Fister brought us back to 2012-2014 when Fister was a dependable middle of the rotation pitcher. Fister’s front door two seamer is still effective, and this one to Bradley Zimmer was spotted perfectly.
Masahiro Tanaka’s Slider – Tanaka is able to make the ball move whichever direction he wants, which keepers hitters off balance and means he doesn’t need the drastic break that some pitchers rely on. This Slider to Miguel Cabrera doesn’t move a ton, but moves off Miggy’s bat enough for the K. (Thanks to Redditor Dragonborn2046 for the tip!)
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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Those three Knebel curveballs to Posey were so filthy. One of the best hitters of this generation knew they were coming but still flailed at them like a 3rd grader.