Every Monday we review the nastiest pitches from the previous weekends’s games in glorious HD GIFs. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite pitch and check back this weekend to see if it will be in contention for the GIF of the First Half. Did we miss your favorite pitch? Send us a tweet next time @ThePitcherList and we’ll GIF it up + give you a shoutout here in the article.
Congrats to Corey Kluber’s Slider for winning Nastiest Pitching GIF of the Week! Kluber returned from the DL and made us realize why we missed him dearly.
Michael Fulmer’s Fastball – While the start was the first of 2017 where Fulmer didn’t earn a Quality Start, the young Detroit stud was showcasing elite talent with a Fastball that not only reached 99mph, but had absurd life too. This pitch is crazy. (Thanks to Redditor TheBrimic for the tip!)
Carlos Carrasco’s Changeup – The subtlety of the movement on this Carrasco Changeup is just too elegant for us to leave off. The pitch looks like a perfectly painted Fastball on the corner before slowing down and dropping under the zone at the last moment. The perfect 1-2 pitch to Mike Moustakas.
Robert Gsellman’s Changeup – Gsellman hasn’t taken full advantage of his time in the Mets’ rotation, but he made strides over the weekend, allowing just 2 ER and fanning six in 5.1 innings. He ended the first with a sweet Changeup, stunning Gregory Polanco as the pitch returned to the plate. (Thanks to Redditor Sheepies123 for the tip!)
Clayton Kershaw’s Curveball – We typically feature Kershaw’s big Curveball that has a massive amount of depth, and we felt the need to highlight Kershaw dipping his arm angle to surprise Eric Thames to emphasize horizontal movement on his hook. We were stunned too, Thames.
Mike Foltynewicz’s Fastball – Folty had himself a day against the Reds, striking out ten batters in seven shutout frames. He got a ton of ride on his Fastball, which Scott Schebler couldn’t handle in the second inning.
Marcus Stroman’s Slider – It was a tough challenge for Stroman on Sunday as he faced the high-octane Yankee bats, but he cruised through and made some clutch pitches to keep the game close. A great example is this 3-2 Slider with a man on third that Brett Gardner just couldn’t resist as it dove down-and-in off the plate.
Matt Harvey’s Fastball – 2017 has been a tough year for Harvey, who hasn’t gotten into the groove we’ve seen in the past. However, he’s had moments of brilliance where he appeared like his former self. Just take a look at him spotting the outside corner to Andrew McCutchen and tell me it doesn’t look just like 2013 all over again.
GIF Of The Weekend
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below and the winner will be featured in the GIF of the Week Contest.
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