Every morning, we review the nastiest pitches from the previous day’s games in glorious high-definition 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 Second Quarter Contest. Did we miss your favorite pitch? Send us a tweet next time @PitcherList, and we’ll GIF it up and give you a shoutout here in the article.
Shane Bieber’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/InconsequentialSpeedyAcornweevil
Shane Bieber got knocked about by the BoSox on Wednesday, but his curveball still had some spectacular moments, particularly in this four-pitch, four-curveball at-bat against Rafael Devers. Even with this awful outing, the young hurler still owns a 3.67 ERA on the season and came into this game with a 3.11 ERA.
Shane Greene’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/VillainousBriefCanadagoose
Even as the Tigers wallow as one of the worst teams in baseball, Shane Greene has been a spectacular bright beacon for them, with a 1.13 ERA and a 0.83 WHIP. His cutter and slider have been his bread and butter, and Keon Broxton got a particularly rude introduction to them in this Tigers win.
Wade Miley’s Cutter
https://gfycat.com/ImpishAmusedDutchshepherddog
After how incredible he was last year and especially now that we’ve seen him keep it up this season, it’s bizarre how averse teams seemed to be to signing Wade Miley. Though Kyle Hendricks may have gotten the better of him in this pitching duel, Miley still had nine strikeouts over seven innings, including this one against Kris Bryant.
Daniel Mengden’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/RegularWellwornBurro
I’d like to shout out this Nasty Pitch series for a quick moment, as it’s given me a reason to know Daniel Mengden aside from his Rollie Fingers-esque mustache. This guy has a nasty, nasty curveball, and Luis Rengifo was personally introduced to it in his 19th major league game. A nice six strikeout outing on Wednesday against the Angels lowered Mengden’s season ERA to an excellent 3.05.
Noah Syndergaard’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/NiceAjarIcterinewarbler
The God of Thunder’s latest outing was still pretty rough around the edges, though it did lower his season ERA to 4.90 (yikes). Despite ugly results though, Noah Syndergaard still has electric stuff, and he did showcase it against the Dodgers at multiple points, though this gorgeous changeup to lay down Joc Pederson was his peak.
Chris Paddack’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/InsistentBrownApisdorsatalaboriosa
Chris Paddack may have had his poorest start of the year against the Yankees on Wednesday, but the electric youngster still had plenty to show off, particularly his acclaimed changeup. Even with a rough outing, his season ERA still stands at 2.40, and he should bounce right back to dominating opposing hitters next week.
Adam Ottavino’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/MammothDecisiveBeetle
It stings that this pitch being a strike is highly questionable because the movement on this Adam Ottavino offering is absolutely brutal. This tweet from Rob Friedman illustrates even further how ridiculous it is, and had Franmil Reyes tried to put bat to ball, he would have looked absolutely foolish.
Blake Snell’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/OrdinaryHollowIncatern
Breaking news: Blake Snell still has the best curveball in baseball. He boasts a 12.26 K/9 on the season and an impressive 3.06 ERA.
GIF of the Night
Which was your favorite pitch? Vote below, and the winner will be featured in the GIF of the Second Quarter Contest.
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