In Tyler Glasnow's start against the Atlanta Braves on Monday, he produced around an extra inch and a half of rise on his four-seam fastball compared to his average in 2019. Below is a look at his short-form movement from 2019 and his lone 2020 start: When a player's fastball is getting an additional rise, … Continue reading Tyler Glasnow Continues to Improve
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The Tampa Bay Rays have some really interesting pitchers on their big league staff; so much so that I've developed something of an obsession with the team. They create some of the best and asthetically-pleasing pitch movement The Rays' pitching development, headed by pitching coach Kyle Snyder, seems to have a firm grasp on effective … Continue reading The Best Pitches in the Tampa Bay Rays Staff
Two-way player Brendan McKay (4th overall selection in the 2017 Amature Draft) of the Tampa Bay Rays pitched 49 innings last year and posted an 0.8 WAR backed by a 4.03 FIP with a 3.5 K/BB-rate. THE TOOLS McKay operates with a four-seam fastball, a classic curveball, a traditional cutter, and a rarely-used changeup. For … Continue reading Mirror Report: Brendan McKay
*This piece originally ran at Baseball Prospectus in May The concept of pitch tunneling has been around for some time, but the analysis behind the strategy isn't plentiful. Whether a pitcher works hard to design his arsenal in such a way that he can keep all his options within a tunnel or if it happens … Continue reading Searching For Pitch Tunneling Benefits
*This series I'll be running on pitch design will involve a fake pitcher named Joe Southpaw, a mid-level minor leaguer for a big-league organization. Joe Southpaw is a lefty reliever with a four-seam fastball, a slider, and a changeup that is used sparingly. All are thrown with a high 3/4 arm slot. Release points are … Continue reading Pitch Adjustments Part 1: Working on the Slider
I've been an advocate for pitching gifs that give accurate perspectives on pitch movement/shape. Viewing a pitch from an analysis standpoint requires the right balance of vertical and horizontal viewpoints. A camera placed too high or one that is off-center can distort what's really happening and can either make a pitch look nastier than it … Continue reading Rating All 30 MLB Center Field Cameras
This uber-popular clip of Charlie Morton's two-seam fastball and curveball is pure fantasy. And no, that doesn't make it any less fun to watch so long as you don't care about its accuracy. https://twitter.com/PitchingNinja/status/1181268716056657925 However, I don't think its physically possible for a pitch to turn on a dime like that, but of course, I'm … Continue reading Thoughts on the Charlie Morton fastball/curveball video.
I make pitching gifs on a regular basis. In fact, there are dozens of other accounts on Twitter that do it as well. We participate in trying to help other fans understand what happens during plate appearances that go beyond what meets the eye. They can be great to see pitch shapes and how they … Continue reading A Better Understanding of Pitch Overlays
Josh Hader is incredibly hard to hit for several reasons. The biggest has to be because of his mechanics as Hader hides the ball really well (especially to left-handed hitters). He does so by angling his body towards the first baseline as you can see by his front foot position. The hitter is kept in … Continue reading Josh Hader Wrecks Timing
