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!
Charlie Morton’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/disgustingsorekittiwake
The World Series finally got underway Tuesday, and veteran Charlie Morton took the hill for the visiting Braves. Morton got Jose Altuve looking for the second time on a great breaking ball. Unfortunately, this would be Morton’s final pitch as he would leave with a lower leg injury immediately after the at-bat.
Framber Valdez’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/excitableeasygoingblacknorwegianelkhound
The Astros countered with Framber Valdez in game one, with the lefty coming off a fantastic start against the Red Sox in the ALCS. He got off to a rough start, allowing two runs in the first, including a leadoff homer but did manage to show off his nasty curve in the first frame as well. Eddie Rosario, who has been hotter than any hitter in the league over the last week, was the first to fall victim to Valdez’s breaking ball on Tuesday.
A.J. Minter’s Cutter
https://gfycat.com/whiterapidarctichare
A.J. Minter relieved the injured Morton and was able to maintain the Atlanta lead through five innings. Minter concluded his first inning of work with a nasty sweeping cutter to ALCS MVP Yordan Alvarez.
Jake Odorizzi’s Splitter
https://gfycat.com/indeliblewelltododowitcher
Jake Odorizzi may not have had the 2021 season he would have liked as the first-year Astro struggled with both injury and performance. The 31-year-old righty did everything the Astros could have asked of him on Tuesday as he picked up seven big outs without allowing a run. Five of those outs came via the K, and this nice splitter put away Jorge Soler in the fourth.
Luke Jackson’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/gloriousneatalbatross
Atlanta’s third reliever of the night was Luke Jackson looking to bounce back from a rough NLCS performance. In his one and two-thirds innings of work, Jackson struck out three, including Chas McCormick on a hammer of a breaking ball.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)