Every morning, we review the nastiest pitches from the previous day’s games in glorious high-definition 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 Quarter Contest. Did we miss your favorite pitch? Send us a tweet next time @PitcherList, and we’ll GIF it up and give you a shoutout here in the article.
Jacob deGrom’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/WhisperedGlamorousGar
It sometimes feels like Jacob deGrom will never get support from his offense or bullpen. Jacob drove in one of the Mets’ three runs and threw nine strikeouts over six innings before Seth Lugo blew the lead in the eighth, giving the Mets ace a no decision. Nevertheless, we’ll recognize deGrom’s excellence in the form of a nasty changeup GIF to knock out Kyle Schwarber.
Marcus Stroman’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/WeepyBeneficialAmphibian
Marcus Stroman lowered his season ERA to a stellar 3.04 yesterday after surrendering just one run to a solid Boston lineup. Stroman also got himself six strikeouts yesterday afternoon, the nastiest of which was this slider that got Red Sox rookie Michael Chavis out.
Justin Verlander’s Fastball
https://gfycat.com/ThesePitifulBeauceron
After winning eight straight games, the Yankees offense finally hit a wall when it had to face Houston ace Justin Verlander. Verlander collected his 10th win of the season yesterday and threw nine strikeouts, including this wicked fastball that froze Yankees slugger Luke Voit.
Jordan Yamamoto’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/WarySorrowfulBovine
Rookie Jordan Yamamoto keeps putting up big performances for the struggling Miami Marlins. Yesterday, he notched his third big league win in as many games, throwing seven strikeouts over the minimum five innings needed to get a win. Yamamoto’s most lethal pitch is his slider, which has an elite 19% swinging-strike rate, and he used it here to fool Cesar Hernandez.
Kenta Maeda’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/MisguidedConsciousAsiansmallclawedotter
Kenta Maeda put up a solid performance for the Dodgers, striking out six Rockies over seven innings while only surrendering two runs. Maeda was dealing from the first batter, Ramiel Tapia, who was absolutely fooled by this filthy changeup, the first of many from Maeda yesterday.
Merrill Kelly’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/ImperturbableSaltyBluetonguelizard
Merrill Kelly had himself a great day yesterday afternoon, as the Diamondbacks starter went six innings and threw nine strikeouts. Kelly’s best pitch of the night was undoubtedly this one, a 93 mph sinker that completely drops out on Kevin Pillar to help strand a runner at third (Kelly would make the third out of the inning soon after).
GIF of the Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below, and the winner will be featured in the GIF of the First Quarter Contest.
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