He was traded to the Pirates in the relatively unpopular Andrew McCutchen trade, and in 80 games for the Bucs over the last two seasons, he's had a 2.41 ERA. Baseball Zone. + View Justin Verlander's Pitches in 3d + Similar Pitchers to Justin Verlander Based on Velocity and Movement: 2022 - Kutter Crawford 2022 - Michael Grove 2022 - Shane Baz Or we could measure change accounting for velocity of the fastball, since faster pitches naturally spin more. 20 prospect, is a 26-year-old rookie who knew Boddy before Boddy joined the Reds staff (though, as Boddy put it in an offseason Twitter thread, Antone's development, including a big velocity spike, is a credit to the pitcher's own work). The top five in vertical drop added above average: 1. Spin Rate How much spin, in revolutions per minute, a pitch was thrown with. PA Year in Review - Top Curveball Spin Rate / Class of 2022 1/22/21; PA Year in Review - Top Curveball Spin Rate / Class of 2021 1/21/21; . This chart compares the on-base percentage each season from before June 3 with the on-base percentage from the period between June 15 and July 18. You can also see how this changes year over year. Trevor Bauer, CLE: 9.5 inches. Aaron Bummer, CHW: 6.8 inches5. As Chatwood could attest, you also need to be able to throw strikes to succeed, because there's no "one secret key to pitching," not spin or velocity or location. Nola, Charlie Morton (431) and Stephen Strasburg (422) were the only ones above 400. (This is satisfying because Richards also had the most curve spin, though it's not always this clean.). With those extra rotations, the balls not going to wind up there., The comments section is closed. Its spin rate is higher than any other curveball in the game3,294 revolutions per minutewhich is both the secret to its success and a new frontier in hitters' devastation. xwOBA is formulated using exit velocity, launch angle 4-seam spin rate: 2,309 rpm. https://t.co/jjzWsnevuv #Statcast pic.twitter.com/T7ohWRrRD2. +20 r.p.m. thrown with. The data says it could be a curveball. Trevor Cahill, LAA: 7.9 inches4. Aaron Brooks, OAK: 6.8 inches5. Guerra has been very good, with a 2.52 ERA, but while his splitter had been getting between 29 and 31 inches of drop in previous seasons, it's dropping only 24.7 inches this year. Jump is a Statcast metric that shows which players have and 32 degrees. the ERA scale, A measurement of a player's top running speed, expressed Instead, let's just show horizontal break above average leaders, which seem more interesting than Yusmeiro Petit and Drew Pomeranz on the rise leaderboards. time of a pitcher's first movement or pitch release. Joakim Soria got the most drop on his curve, at 76.2 inches, but he also threw the second-slowest curves, at 70 MPH. ","type":"markdown"},{"__typename":"Video","contentDate":"2020-03-30T22:13:19.238Z","description":"Charlie Morton led Major League Baseball with 136 strikeouts on curveballs in 2019","displayAsVideoGif":false,"duration":"00:00:52","mp4AvcPlayback":"https://bdata-producedclips.mlb.com/04b26270-9751-4ade-b287-91eda5fb3b1f.mp4","slug":"charlie-morton-s-curveball-k-s","tags":[{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"season-2019","title":"Season 2019"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"playerid-450203","title":"Charlie Morton"}],"templateUrl":"https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/private/{formatInstructions}/mlb/jozmynep4lmpbyb0gcjn","title":"Charlie Morton's curveball K's","type":"video","url":"/video/charlie-morton-s-curveball-k-s"},{"__typename":"Markdown","content":"Morton threw his curveball more often than any other offering in 2019, and for good reason. 1) Reds: 2,884 rpm pic.twitter.com/D1u6jZocyX. " Qualifier In order to qualify at all, a pitcher must have 3 pitches thrown per team game Pitch classification is always a moving target. Spin rate in particular stands out, because while measuring things like foot speed or arm strength is simply putting numbers to things we've always seen, spin rate is something most of us had never even considered before 2015, much less put numbers to.So, to Richards' question: Is high spin on a curveball good? He averaged 100.2 mph with his cutter in 2021. Remember, these are compared to the movement of pitches at similar velocities and releases, so each pitcher has their own average to be compared against. The elite threshold for curveball spin is 3,000 rpm. A measurement of a player's top running speed, expressed in "feet per second in a player's fastest one-second window." Bolt A Bolt is any run where the Sprint Speed (defined as "feet per second in a player's fastest one-second window") of the runner is at least 30 . His horizontal break is top 3 vs the average and vertical break is top 4 (lower vertical break to create drop). Phil Maton, SD: 6.0 inches2. To that point, he had a 33.6% putaway rate on the pitch, the highest of any pitcher to throw more than 100 two-strike curveballs. For a batter, Best Speed is an average of 50% of his hardest hit balls. From the view of his release below, the pitch is . attempt. Cleveland Guardians pitching highlight in-game highlight Pitching CLE Quantrill R Pitch Type: Curveball Pitch Speed: 83.6 mph Spin Rate: 2451 rpm Batting NYY Volpe R Exit Velocity: - Launch Angle: - Hit Distance: 0 ft BOTTOM 3 1 - 2, 1 Out The top five in vertical drop added over the player's comparison average: 1. His whiff% was 61.2%, which was 19% better than anyone else. In the rows below, you may find each pitcher's spin direction per pitch type, from the hitter's perspective. All rights reserved. This time Sims leads the way. That puts them in a different tier. The Yankees' closer had his ups and downs in 2021, but this was an up -- the fastest pitch of the MLB season. xBA measures the likelihood that a batted ball will (Some of these pitchers have openly discussed the effect of sticky substances, but several things like injuries, changing pitching strategies or simply random poor performance can account for changes in spin rates for individual pitchers.). Kyle Crick, PIT: 10.2 inches5. outfield. Tyler Glasnow vs. Josh Harrison, June 884.5 mph / 2,862 rpm curveball with 7.7 feet of extension. When asked about the effects of the rule changes, Rob Manfred, the commissioner of Major League Baseball, focused on the positive effects it has had on the games offense. Hitters went 11-for-127 against it this season, an .087 batting average, with 77 strikeouts. A Bolt is any run where the Sprint Speed (defined as This slider started off barely a foot off the ground, and it ended up more than three-and-a-half feet high at the top of the strike zone, making it a true rising slider. Morton threw his curveball more often than any other offering in 2019, and for good reason. 2. Aaron Nola, PhilliesWhy he's so nasty: 445 called + swinging strikes on curves. There's not quite as strong a correlation between changeup movement and success as there are from other pitches -- for the sake of brevity, we're not showing the horizontal leaderboard here, but it's not terribly impressive, aside from Mike Soroka ranking fifth -- which tells you that the strength of a change is often about how it works off the pitcher's fastball. Its high spin rate is extremely abnormal for a changeup, which is typically the lowest-spin pitch type -- Williams averaged 2,818 rpm this season; the next-closest pitcher was Trevor Richards at 2,471 rpm, and the MLB average was 1,750 rpm. xERA is a simple 1:1 translation of xwOBA, converted to Luke Jackson, ATL: 9.5 inches2. Nola struck out over 100 batters with his curveball for a second straight season, and his 109 curveball Ks were second only to Morton's 136. What we've learned as we measure total spin is that it's important next to try to identify how much of the two types of spin make up the total number -- if Fiers and Richards have the same useful spin, but Richards is also adding on additional less useful gyrospin to inflate his total spin number, that would sure explain the movement discrepancy.So, back to the original question: Is more spin on a curveball good? More than a month into the era of increased scrutiny on the application of prohibited sticky substances to major league baseballs, spin rates on fastballs have fallen about 4 percent, as strikeouts have decreased and on-base percentage has risen midseason changes without parallel in decades. This one broke almost two feet away from Soto, which is how you so badly fool the most disciplined hitter in baseball. Making spin rate more useful over a wide range of pitchers of varying velocities. How far, in feet, a fielder or runner has traveled on a 25.1. . That's not very impressive. Bats can't be thicker than 2.6 inches at their thickest point; 4.4 inches of rise is a lot. His curveball had an average spin rate of 2,907 rpm, ranking fourth among starting pitchers to throw at least 250 curves last year. 2. But that much spin can account for an extra inch of movement on a fastball and significantly more for some pitchers said Michael Fisher, founder of Codify, a company that provides customized analytics to dozens of major league pitchers. Strikeouts were at record highs. Roe's frisbee slider has been the subject of endless celebratory articles over the years, and earlier this spring, Rays catcher Mike Zunino told you all you need to know about it: I wouldnt be surprised if he fools me while Im catching -- and I know whats coming, Zunino laughed. And when hitters did manage to make contact against Morton's curve, they rarely did damage, recording a .151 average with a .228 slugging percentage. And it began to level off around June 15, the date M.L.B. And in baseball, an inch can mean the difference between a three-run home run and an inning-ending double play. The Cincinnati pitching staff leads the Major Leagues in fastball and curveball spin rate -- and that's no accident. attempt. Now that the 2021 season is over, let's look back at the nastiest pitches of the year -- with help from Statcast. They traded for Bauer, Driveline's most famous acolyte and maybe the most data-driven pitcher in MLB today, last July to form a starting-pitching troika with Luis Castillo and Sonny Gray. xERA is a simple 1:1 translation of xwOBA, converted to The most horizontal movement compared to their similarity average: Chris Sale, who gets nearly five more inches than other sinkers similar to his velocity and release, just ahead of Cory Gearrin and Charlie Morton. He averaged 3053 RPM in his MLB debut and maxed out at 3201 RPM with one of his curveballs. But there's one big way the Cincinnati staff stands out: spin. Let's look at two different curveballs from Richards that differ in spin rate by about 500 RPM. Statcast defines a 'hard-hit ball' as one hit with an April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct. -100 -80 -60 -40 -20 Avg. Although applying any foreign substance to a baseball has been prohibited since the 1920s, the use of sticky substances like Spider Tack a powerful adhesive created to help competitive strongmen and strongwomen hoist enormous Atlas stones was an open secret, in line with the sports tradition of winking at scofflaws until the situation gets out of control. This pick isnt really about the numbers, though Kershaws have been excellent. This week, MLB.com is highlighting some of the nastiest pitches in baseball -- a different pitch type every day, with five pitchers featured for each (no repeats), picked by our reporters. MLB.TV. The Cincinnati pitching staff leads the Major Leagues in fastball and curveball spin rate -- and that's no accident. 4-Seam Fastball (50.4%) Slider (28.3%) Curveball (18.8%) Changeup (2.4%) + If Available Pitches Click to Video. Sims has some of the highest spin rates in the entire league, and makes up for his lack of drop with some ridiculous glove-side cut. Gerrit Cole vs. Xander Bogaerts, July 23101.3 mph / 2,575 rpm fastball. and, on certain types of batted balls, Sprint Speed. They're throwing easily the most high-spin four-seamers of any team (they're at 2,500-plus rpm 49.2% of the time, and the Rangers are second at 34.7%). It seems like it might be if you want movement and grounders, and while fastballs that induce flies can be useful, slower breaking pitches in the air don't generally end as well for the pitcher. and, on certain types of batted balls, Sprint Speed. Lucchesi throws something that's kind of a curveball and kind of a changeup -- sometimes he calls it a "churve," believe it or not -- but he's been pretty clear it's ultimately a changeup, as he told FanGraphs. Mike Fiers, -11.99 inches Greinke will float in his slow curve in the 60s or even the 50s. With a spin rate (2,886 rpm) that was well above the MLB curveball average (2,523 rpm), the big sweeping hook neutralized all comers, regardless of what batter's box they were standing in, and helped the veteran right-hander finish third in the American League Cy Young Award voting. Morton's curveball has elite spin and elite movement, and this one was so nasty it got Rojas to swing even though the pitch nearly hit him as it broke over a foot inside. All rights reserved. Four guys, Ryan Pressly, Seth Lugo, Jesse Hahn, along with Stratton were above 3000 RPM, while 121 different MLB pitchers were 2500+ RPM in 2019. . Charlie Morton, RaysWhy he's so nasty: 8.1 inches of horizontal movement above avg. Richards, the king of high spin, managed a stellar 75-percent grounder rate on his curve, which is to say that three quarters of the curves that hitters make contact with went into the ground. Through May 10, the date of his last start before an extended injured list stint, Glasnow had 37 strikeouts on his curveball -- second in the Majors behind his teammate Morton, who had just one more than Glasnow. How fast, in miles per hour, a ball was hit by a batter. xBA measures the likelihood that a batted ball will To submit a letter to the editor for publication, write to, The Pitchers Whose Spin Rates Fell Most After a Crackdown on Sticky Substances, Source: Upshot analysis of pitch data from, Includes pitches thrown in games through July 17, 2021. In a typical season, a pitchers spin rate doesnt change much: The rate on a fastball in May is usually close to the one on his fastball in September. pic.twitter.com/zHPw6ytf7m, Chaz Roe's filthy Slider in super-slow motion. That's what the new pitch movement leaderboards at Baseball Savant attempt to account for, reporting movement numbers in inches, with gravity included, and also showing context by comparing movement against similar pitches of that type (defined as pitches within plus/minus 2 MPH of velocity, and within plus/minus half a foot of extension and release point) to reflect what a batter sees from his perspective. That said, Ramirez has had one of baseball's more effective changeups this year, and it's not that hard to see why. Crick's slider broke two full feet from right to left which is why Adams swung at it even though it was so far inside it ended up hitting him on the back leg. Shop. The rules prohibiting foreign substances have been routinely ignored. The curveball might be baseball's most beautiful pitch. Heres how all the pitchers in our data ranked based on three different ways of comparing fastball spin changes: Or use the tool below to see how spin rates changed for any pitcher in our analysis. Hector Neris, PHI: 3.5 inches3. Forty-five of the 76 strikeouts Glasnow got last season were on his curveball -- that's 59% of his strikeouts. . Sean Newcomb, ATL: 8.3 inches3. The changes in spin rates measured using data from high-speed cameras that track every pitch of every game are the most direct evidence that substances like Spider Tack were a significant factor in the dominance of pitching in the opening weeks of the season. Source: Upshot analysis of pitch data. Dustin May vs. Trent Grisham, April 253,539 rpm curveball. Highest spin: 2,421 rpm, Daniel Hudson MLB average: 1,746 rpm Lowest spin: 961 rpm, Nathan Eovaldi Eovaldi's pitch is sometimes called a splitter and sometimes a change, but he made an interesting move to add spin with a different grip, even though more spin on a changeup isn't really ideal. Zack Britton, NYY: 9.5 inches3. (To be included, a pitcher must have thrown at least 150 fastballs before June 3 and at least 150 fastballs since June 15.). Kershaws curve is a thing of beauty -- a slow-moving hook that drops from the heavens. How hard, in miles per hour, a pitch is thrown. xBA measures the likelihood that a batted ball will If we're trying to get to real movement added, then we can say that Garrett Richards' curveball, which dropped 65 inches on the way to the plate, had +12.4 inches more drop than similar curves at his velocity, which you can also word as "24% more drop." Check out the vertical movement leaders:2015 curveball vertical movement leaders (minimum 100 thrown)1. 2023 - Spin Based All Pitchers Minimum Pitches (50) Update Download CSV Percent of Spin that Contributes to Movement by Release Speed 75 MPH 80 MPH 85 MPH 90 MPH 95 MPH 100 MPH 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Four Seam Sinker Cutter Splitter Change Slider Curve Richards, -11.43 inches On the opposite end of the spectrum from Glasnow's power curveball is Greinke's eephus curve, one of the most fun pitches to watch. Yu Darvish, CHC: 4.2 inches3. 2,970 rpm -- Charlie Morton 5. Chris Tillman, -10.08 inches Clase throws the hardest cutter on record, and this one is the single fastest cutter strikeout on record -- a 101.8 mph game-ending K. Pitch tracking goes back to 2008, and Clase has all of the 19 fastest strikeouts on cutters in that span. A Bolt is any run where the Sprint Speed (defined as produces a result. The first having 3633 RPM at 84 MPH and the second with 3127 RPM at 81 MPH. A pitch-design specialist, Bauer already had high fastball spin before this season, adding about 200 rpm from 2015, the first season of Statcast tracking, to 2019, when he averaged 2,412 rpm. How far, in feet, a runner is ranging off the bag at the Statcast refers to the spin that contributes to movement Sign up to receive our daily Morning Lineup to stay in the know about the latest trending topics around Major League Baseball. a batted-ball event with a launch angle between eight Baseballs arent spinning the way they used to. There are good reasons for that approach, but in addition to results that don't always match the eye test, it allows for some pitches to break "up," which, of course, doesn't align with what you -- or hitters -- see. Marco Estrada, OAK: 4.4 inches2. 3,337 rpm -- Lugo 2. Of course, if you want to report these things with gravity included, you have to account for the fact that gravity requires time to have an effect. Here are the teams in 2020 with the highest spin rate on fastballs according to MLB Statcast. Just like with the fastball spin leaderboard, the Reds have a whole group of pitchers in the top tier of curveball spin -- five in the top 20, with two of the top 10 starters and three of the top 10 relievers. A Statcast metric designed to express the demonstrated skill of catchers at preventing wild pitches or passed balls compared to their peers. A high-spin curveball tends to get more movement, and more break on your curve is good if you want to get strikeouts with it, and also keep hitters from getting it into the air where they can do damage. Nola's curveball gets tons of break -- his vertical movement last season was three inches above average, and his horizontal movement was two inches above average -- but what really sets him apart is that he has supreme command of it even with how much it moves. Roberto Osuna, HOU: 3.6 inches. in "feet per second in a player's fastest one-second His slider is a low-to-mid-80s sweeper with nearly a foot of horizontal break on average with 2,900-3,000 rpm of raw spin. How much time, in seconds, it takes a runner to get from 40-Man Roster Depth Chart Coaches Top 30 Prospects Transactions Front Office Broadcasters Minor League Affiliates. MLB Advanced Media, LP. window") of the runner is at least 30 ft/sec. They don't call Jackson "the Friendly Neighborhood Slider-Man" for nothing, apparently. He also has a high baseball IQ. The Reds have two pitchers doing that right now.\n\nIn fact, the Reds have three pitchers in MLB's top 10 highest-spin four-seamers, and four averaging 2,400 rpm or higher.\n\n**Reds pitchers on 4-seam fastball spin rate leaderboard** \nTrevor Bauer: 2,817 rpm -- #1 in MLB \nLucas Sims: 2,801 rpm -- #2 in MLB (#1 among RP) \nMichael Lorenzen: 2,644 rpm -- #9 in MLB (#7 among RP) \nSonny Gray: 2,405 rpm -- top 25% of MLB (top 28% among SP) \nRaisel Iglesias: 2,386 rpm -- top 29% of MLB (top 27% among RP)\n\nAlmost half of the four-seam fastballs the Reds have thrown this season have had a spin rate of 2,500 rpm or higher. 5. the fastest reactions and most direct routes in the The Reds have amassed a stable of high-spin arms, and they sure look like they're targeting and developing these pitchers for a reason.
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