Every morning, the We Love Baseball crew reviews the Nastiest Pitches from the previous day’s games. If you see something you think should be included here be sure to tweet @PitcherList to let us know. Or, if you’re a PL+ Member and part of our Discord, shout it out in the Nastiest Pitches channel. If your suggestion is included the next day, you’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for a free t-shirt. If you’re not already a PL+ member, you’re missing out!
Kyle Gibson’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/essentialopenbullmastiff
Gibson has done a decent job of limiting hard contact with his slider. It sits at a 17.9% Hard Contact%. Based on his strike zone plot he really tries to hit this down-and-away spot. The downside to that is it has just a 7.6% Called Strike%. He ended up with a very impressive 25 whiffs on the day.
Charlie Morton’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/optimalgrimbrownbear
Morton took a while to get going in 2022, but his curveball is back to its old tricks. A 38.2% O-Swing%, 19.0% Swinging Strike%, and .250 wOBA explain why it’s his most used pitch at 38%.
Luis Ortiz’s Fastball
https://gfycat.com/spiritedgentlebobolink
Ortiz is one of several exciting young pieces in the Pirates rotation. He had 7 Ks, 15 whiffs, and only 1 hit allowed in 4.2 IP. He also touched 100 MPH.
Luis Castillo’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/testybountifuldalmatian
Castillo’s changeup has been getting worse each year of his career. It used to be one of the better ones in MLB, but this year the results have been average. A brief review of its metrics don’t point to any obvious reason why it has been less effective. He has compensated by decreasing its usage somewhat to 23%, down from about 30% in 2020 and 2021.
José Alvarado’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/dapperfailingindusriverdolphin
Sure, this is right down the middle, but a 102.5 MPH sinker?! Come on now. Alvarado has sustained his stuff longer than most nasty relievers. If anything, it seems to have gotten better.
Ryne Stanek’s Fastball
https://gfycat.com/pleasantachingbluegill
Stanek really pounds the top of the zone with his four-seamer, to good effect. It has a 35.3% O-Swing%, 17.0% Swinging Strike%, and .267 wOBA. Good old-fashioned country hard ball.
Edward Cabrera’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/soupysmoothkoi
Cabrera’s changeup is one of the most fun pitches in MLB. It sits 7.2 MPH higher than the average changeup. This is largely the reason for its 42.1% O-Swing%. No wonder it is by far his most utilized pitch at 34%.
Edward Cabrera’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/esteemedfoolhardybrahmancow
Cabrera also has quite the curve. Here’s hoping this is the start of a long and successful career and a lot more appearances on Nastiest Pitches.
Camilo Doval’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/alerthomelyhoneybee
This is a perfect 99.3 MPH sinker from Doval to end the game with the tying run at 2nd. Doval and Carroll should have many more battles between each other to look forward to. Doval also threw a 103.9 MPH cutter.
Adam Wainwright’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/enragedinsignificantandeancat
Is this Wainwright’s last appearance on Nastiest Pitches? His curve still gets 3.3″ more drop than the average curveball. It doesn’t get quite the results it used to, but it is still a good pitch. I love the big overhand curveball.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)