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!
Kevin Gausman’s Splitter
https://gfycat.com/ignoranthugejunco
Kevin Gausman was tabbed as Toronto’s game-one starter in their Monday doubleheader. The Jays’ ace picked up six punchouts with five coming on his fantastic splitter. He had Ryan Mountcastle fishing after this one.
Michael Wacha’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/delightfuluntidycreature
Michael Wacha is quietly having a great season in Boston—a place where many are not. Despite the team’s struggles, Wacha currently has a career-low ERA and has hit double-digit wins for the first time in six seasons. He would not add a tally to the win column on Monday as the Sox succumbed to the Rays 4-3. Wacha collected seven strikeouts and got a Manuel Margot whiff on this changeup.
Lance Lynn’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/silverweeklyazurewingedmagpie
The red-hot Mariners returned home the winners of seven straight to take on Lance Lynn and the White Sox on Labor Day afternoon. Lynn picked up eleven strikeouts en route to ending the Mariners’ winning streak. He ended the second inning with a nasty curveball to Rookie of the Year favorite Julio Rodríguez.
Hunter Brown’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/granulargivingflicker
Astros top prospect Hunter Brown made his Major League debut on Monday and continued to show the same dominance he’s shown at the minor league level in 2022. Brown tossed six shutout innings while picking up five Ks. This sharp breaking ball completely fell off the table to elicit the whiff from Leody Taveras.
Brady Singer’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/unlawfulagonizingethiopianwolf
Brady Singer tallied only a single strikeout on Monday night but still put forth a quality start as the young Royal continued to make strides in his third season. The solitary strikeout was quite nasty, however, and took All-Star José Ramírez to a knee on a back-foot slider.
Logan Webb’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/remarkablecornyelver
Bitter rivals, the Dodgers and Giants matched up on Labor Day with Logan Webb garnering the start for the visitors. He allowed a two-run homer to Freddie Freeman in the first but ended the inning with a filthy backdoor two-seamer to Trayce Thompson.
Blake Snell’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/infantilezealouscorydorascatfish
Blake Snell tossed a gem but received no help from the San Diego offense as the Padres dropped Monday’s game to the visiting Diamondbacks. Snell collected 10 strikeouts with a whopping eight of them coming on his slider. His first of the night came by way of Josh Rojas.
Mike Baumann’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/admirableimpressionableeel
Mike Baumann was the counterpart to the aforementioned Gausman, and while Baumann did not find the same success, he held his own against a powerful Toronto lineup. He ended the day with a pair of strikeouts and made Teoscar Hernández look silly on a hammer of a breaking ball.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)