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!
Blake Treinen’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/specificdarkaplomadofalcon
It’s rare that a pitch defies the awful camera angle in Philly, but Blake Treinen is no average Joe. The man is the nastiest pitcher in baseball for a reason, and the slider has been a revolutionary pitch for him this year. Not even one of the best hitters in baseball can hit this junk.
Corbin Burnes‘ Changeup
https://gfycat.com/infamousheftydunnart
A lot has been said about Corbin Burnes‘ performance on Wednesday night and I am not the man to add anything additional to what others have said. He was precise, effective, filthy, disgusting, and every other adjective you can think of. I really wish we got a slo-mo of this changeup because it was his best pitch of the night.
César Valdez’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/satisfiedsizzlingcockroach
Speaking of a great changeup with an equally great slo-mo, here’s one from César Valdez which drops completely off the table. The changeup has been his best pitch all season and he’s on my must-watch list every time he pitches.
Michael Rucker’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/uncommonlikabledaddylonglegs
I’ve never heard of Michael Rucker before today and now he’s added himself to my (growing) watchlist. This curveball is headed for the corner of the zone until the very last moment. Talk about pitcher on pitcher crime. That’s filthy.
Juan Minaya’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/similarwindingafricanrockpython
José Abreu was clearly upset with himself after swinging at this pitch but I can’t really blame him for doing so. A 90 MPH changeup that falls out of the zone this late? I’m sorry, nobody is hitting that pitch. Or if they do it won’t be much more than a stubby grounder back to the pitcher.
Alek Manoah’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/wideeyednastyboar
Pedro Martínez has long talked about the importance of pitching inside and having the confidence to do so regularly. It can’t be easy to throw a front-door sinker with the threat of hitting the batter at any time, but Alek Manoah did it a handful of times last night with confidence. This one was as perfect of a pitch as you can throw.
Nathan Eovaldi’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/honoredblackandwhitehatchetfish
Nathan Eovaldi got plenty of help from his offense last night and would have won this game pretty easily no matter what, but he earned the win in style with 10 strikeouts in seven very strong innings. The curveball had 12/20 CSW and was dancing around all night long. With Chris Sale coming back on Saturday, Eovaldi will finally have some help in the Boston rotation, and I’d argue he’s been the most important player for these Red Sox this season.
Sandy Alcantara’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/farawaynewabalone
I love Sandy Alcantara’s changeup so much. The thing moves like crazy and still registers at 94 MPH in the 7th inning, which is absurd. A pitch that fast should not move that much.
Brusdar Graterol’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/illiteratesadgnat
This pitch moved a ton, but it was hidden by the camera angle as usual. Odúbel Herrera can tell you firsthand how filthy this pitch was, though, and based on this swing we can probably figure out how he felt about it.
Lucas Luetge’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/littlesmoggyavians
Finally, for those of you who simply love pretty curveballs with a ton of drop, here’s a beautiful curveball from Lucas Luetge. No, Salvador Perez was not going to be hitting this thing no matter what.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)