Every morning, the We Love Baseball crew reviews the Nastiest Pitches from the previous day’s games in glorious high-definition GIFs. We want to bring you the highest caliber of nastiness possible, so if you see a nasty pitch, please tell us about it. You can tweet @PitcherList to let us know and we’ll give you a shout-out here in the article if your tip makes the cut.
As a bonus for PL+ members, let us know about a pitch on the PL+ Discord in the Nasty Pitches Channel, and if your suggestion is included the next day, you’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for a free T-shirt!
Dustin May’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/NeedyConfusedIcelandgull
We start off this Monday morning edition of Nastiest Pitches out West, where the Angels and Dodgers met for the first time this season. The Dodgers completed the sweep in the series, but the top moment from yesterday’s game has to be this one right here. The young and fiery (both in terms of hair color and velocity) Dustin May faced off against the best ballplayer on the planet, Mike Trout. May finishes off Trout with a blistering 99 mph sinker that dots the edge of the zone to freeze the best of the best. Pure filth.
Zack Wheeler’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/ElderlyCalculatingAmericangoldfinch
Moving on to another major rivalry, the Mets faced off against the Phillies yesterday, as their former number-three pitcher Zack Wheeler took the mound. Wheeler was solid against his former team, putting up seven innings and four strikeouts, including this one that absolutely fools former teammate Michael Conforto.
Chaz Roe’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/LeftHauntingHadrosaurus
As much as I’d like to complain about the camera angle here, I simply have to feature Chaz Roe, because he’s just so filthy. Even in Buffalo, where the camera obscures the movement, I know for a fact that Danny Jansen is standing there, swinging, and thinking to himself, “How does he make that pitch move like that?” I wish I knew Danny, I wish I knew.
Max Scherzer’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/KnobbyDownrightGoldenmantledgroundsquirrel
Moving onto the Beltway Series, where Max Scherzer faced off against a hot Orioles team, which came into today with a .600 win percentage. But even Scherzer ran into some trouble with this Orioles offense, which managed to score five off the Nationals ace. Still, Scherzer sent 10 hitters down on strikes, including Rio Ruiz, who chased this nasty changeup out of the bottom of the zone.
Elieser Hernandez’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/PiercingNearKite
Perhaps the best pitching performance from yesterday afternoon came from an unexpected Marlins pitcher. Elieser Hernandez pitched five scoreless innings and struck out nine Braves hitters while allowing only 3 base hits yesterday. Here is his second of the day, a filthy slider that gets Adam Duvall swinging at a pitch that’s placed perfectly on the lower-outer corner.
Lance McCullers’ Knuckle-Curve
https://gfycat.com/officialidlebelugawhale
Lance McCullers had himself a nice day on the mound yesterday against the Mariners, going five innings and striking out seven opposing hitters. McCullers utilized his knuckle-curve 36 times yesterday and got an impressive 53% CSW (19 total) on the pitch. Here’s his final whiff he got off of it, and it’s a disgusting pitch that fools JP Crawford for the final out McCullers would make on the day.
Dan Altavilla’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/FaintOptimisticBedlingtonterrier
Staying with the Astros and Mariners, we now take a look at Dan Altavilla who threw a clean one-two-three inning of relief, with all opposing hitters going down on strikes. Here’s his first out of the inning, a gorgeous 88 mph slider that nibbles on the outer corner of the plate for a called strike three on Martin Maldonado (H/T to PL+ member Chris Nichols)
Shane Greene’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/ShockingSimplisticBushsqueaker
Going back to the Marlins-Braves game, we now take a look at the winning pitching staff from the game, as we give the Braves pitchers a shoutout for their two-hit shutout of the Marlins. We feature Shane Greene and his disgusting sinker which just barely darts over the inside edge of the plate to freeze Matt Joyce on a pitch he thought he could pass on.
Rick Porcello’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/DimwittedEducatedJapanesebeetle
Finally today, we look at Rick Porcello, who tossed six mediocre innings for the Mets, allowing four runs and picking up his third loss of the year. Yeah, it certainly was not pretty, but this offering from Porcello definitely is. It’s a changeup that drops out on Didi Gregorius for a swinging strike three, and boy, is it nasty.
GIF of the Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below, and the winner may be featured in our Nastiest Pitches tournament midway through the season.
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