Pitcher List was founded on the back of filthy pitches, and we strive to bring you the best of the best every day. However, with over 70+ pitches featured every week, there are a lot to sort through. We ask you, the readers, to vote for your favorite every day, and now is your chance to crown the best of the week.
Every week, we will be featuring the top pitches from each day as voted on by the readers. Then, every Tuesday, you’ll have a chance to vote for your favorite for the week. Make your voice heard in the comments, on Twitter, and in our Discord for which pitch you think is the best!
5/31 – Tommy Nance’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/unawaremintybrocketdeer
A late entry for Nastiest Pitch of the month, this Tommy Nance sinker was a thing of beauty. His first MLB season has been a success up to this point, allowing only two hits in just under nine innings pitched. He features a nasty late-breaking curveball and a good slider to go along with this filthy high-90s sinker. Nance has been a revelation for the Cubs’ bullpen so far and should see plenty of high leverage usage as the season goes on.
6/1 – Luis Garcia’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/secondsorrowfulanemonecrab
Another young pitcher that’s establishing himself as a solid MLB player is Luis Garcia, the Astros’ starting pitcher whose slider can do things like this. It’s his number one putaway pitch (28%) and gets a ridiculous 17.2 inches of horizontal break. He also throws it around 80 MPH on average, which is slow for a slider and definitely helps with its deception. It’s a nasty pitch and Hunter Renfroe had no chance of connecting with this one.
6/2 – Miguel Castro’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/querulouspinkhen
Every time I see this pitch I laugh. The leading vote-getter of the week is without a doubt going to end up being a Nastiest Pitch of the month candidate, meaning that Ketel Marte’s attempt to take off like Superman will be replayed over and over for weeks to come. Miguel Castro is one of the nastiest pitchers in the league but he got a little help on this one from Marte’s reaction, for sure.
6/2 – Framber Valdez’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/exemplarysleepycockerspaniel
Remember when Framber Valdez broke his finger and we all thought he was done for the year? Well here he is throwing filthy sinkers and striking out ten Red Sox at the beginning of June, just as we all should have expected. The curveball was consistently his best pitch on Wednesday night but this sinker was arguably his best overall. Nasty stuff and it’s great to have Famber back on the bump.
6/2 – Caleb Thielbar’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/grandlargebutterfly
The best nickname in the game, Meat Raffle, is the name given to the man possessing one of the nastiest curveballs in the league. Caleb Thielbar averages about 71 MPH on his curveball, but he reached back for a little extra deception on this 62.4 MPH filth. It was his slowest curveball thrown this season by over five MPH (the next slowest was 67.8 MPH) and Freddy Galvis stood no chance.
6/3 – Josh Hader’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/wholegiantatlanticspadefish
Transitioning from the nastiest curveball machine in the game to the nastiest closer in the game, Josh Hader continues to mow down opposing hitters with his deadly Fastball-Slider-Changeup mix. The slider has an unreal 44.7% CSW on the season, helping him compile 14 saves to this point with a miniscule 0.76 ERA.
6/4 – Freddy Peralta’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/ambitiousdeafeningcarp
Another filthy slider in that Brewers clubhouse is the one thrown by Freddy Peralta, the man who has exploded onto the scene this year and flirted with a no-hitter on Friday night. The pitch has a 34.5% CSW on the year, exactly what we want to see from a guy looking to strike batters out. As a fan of good pitching, I love to watch Freddy on the mound and will go out of my way to see his starts.
6/5 – Jacob deGrom’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/youngathleticfugu
Jacob deGrom is setting all kinds of records this year. The man is locked in and is absolutely untouchable right now. On the season, his slider has a ridiculous 44.2% CSW. That is simply unfair.
6/5 – Nabil Crismatt’s Changeup
https://gfycat.com/paleeageramericanbadger
Nabil Crismatt is a name I’ve never heard before, but now he’s definitely on my radar. I love a good changeup with a ton of arm side movement. Dominic Smith was completely fooled on this 2-0 pitch that looked like a juicy fastball right down the middle.
6/6 – Aroldis Chapman’s Splitter
https://gfycat.com/thickmammothgoshawk
Look at the spin on that ball! According to Baseball Savant, this splitter from Aroldis Chapman had a spin rate of 654 RPM. The average spin rate for his splitter is 1199 RPM, so this one was extra splitty. And extra nasty.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)
Had to flip a coin between Thielbar’s Curve and Chapman’s Splitter.
Heads… Thielbar.
Thielbar was my choice too. Best curve in the game right now IMO