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 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.
Stephen Strasburg’s Curveball – It feels a little mean to pick on R.A. Dickey considering he’s a pitcher hitting against one of the best starters in the majors, but was there a sniper in the stands? Dickey’s big flinch shows just how much Strasburg can fool a hitter with his Curveball. Dickey thinks it’s going for his head and the pitch falls in for a strike. Beautiful.
Chris Sale’s Slider – Jose Bautista seems to realize after he starts his swing that he made a terrible mistake deciding to swing. He saves himself from looking completely foolish by holding his swing, but it’s still a strike and shows how difficult it is to face Chris Sale. (Thanks to Redditor ithrew88 for the tip!)
James Paxton’s Curveball – Paxton gave up his first run of the season, but that’s a small blip on a great start to the season for him. Here we get another check swing, but again the hitter, Trevor Plouffe, can’t hold up. A sign of great stuff. (Thanks to @rutledge_josiah for the tip!)
Alex Claudio’s Changeup – The Rangers have had their bullpen implode to start the season with Sam Dyson ineffective and now on the DL along with a slew of other injuries and ineptitude. Here Alex Claudio shows that he has the potential to be the Rangers LOOGY, and maybe more, if he can get some more Ks going forward. This Changeup looks strange coming from Claudio’s side arm delivery and makes Raul Mondesi look foolish. (Thanks to Redditor cjn13 for the tip!
Raisel Iglesias‘ Slider – Iglesias is death to right handed hitter with his side arm delivery and live fastball. Here he uses a Slider with impressive downward movement to get Jonathan Schoop to swing through.
Trevor Bauer’s Fastball – Bauer can be frustrating to watch with the way he nibbles around the zone when it seems his insane movement can overpower any hitter, but that movement is often difficult to command. Bauer’s command was good enough last night. This Two-Seamer seems to be going at Jason Castro’s hip before veering right over the inside corner for the backwards K.
Lance McCullers’ Curveball – McCullers’ Curveball alone will make him a pitcher in the majors for a long time. If his Changeup doesn’t develop he may have a future as a top shelf closer. For now, the Astros are rightfully giving McCullers’ every chance to be an effective starter. This pitch is placed perfectly to strike out C.J. Cron during a good night for McCullers.
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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That Claudio change is as unique a pitch as I’ve ever seen