Every morning, the We Love Baseball crew reviews the Nastiest Pitches from the previous day’s games. If you see something you think should be included here be sure to tweet @PitcherList to let us know. Or, if you’re a PL+ Member and part of our Discord, shout it out in the Nastiest Pitches channel.
Ryan Weathers‘ Sweeper
Ryan Weathers racked up ten strikeouts over six innings in this start against the Giants. He was able to get Jung Hoo Lee to take an ugly hack at this nasty sweeper. This was Weathers’ best outing of the season, and the southpaw carries a 24.7 percent strikeout rate through four games.
Yusei Kikuchi’s Fastball
Kikuchi had a tall task ahead of him on Tuesday against this Yankees lineup. The left-hander has had a highly impressive season so far though. He currently sports a 33 percent strikeout rate and a 2.59 xFIP through four games. Here he gets Aaron Judge to chase after a 96 mph fastball above the strike zone.
Grayson Rodriguez’s Changeup
Grayson Rodriguez fools Jose Miranda here on a nasty 84 mph changeup. The changeup is the 24-year-old’s second-most used pitch at 23.5 percent. Rodriguez has tallied at least five strikeouts in all four of his starts this season and hasn’t surrendered more than two runs in a game.
Jordan Hicks‘ Sweeper
Not many starters throw harder than Jordan Hicks, but the righty chose to dabble in some off-speed stuff to get Bryan De La Cruz to whiff on this one. He averages 97.1 mph on his heater but has only been throwing the pitch 7.4 percent of the time this year. Hicks hasn’t been going too deep into games this season, but he has only given up four runs through four starts.
Reynaldo López’s Slider
Reynaldo López slides this pitch right past Chas McCormick for one of seven punch-outs on the day. The 30-year-old Lopez has looked dominant in his first year with Atlanta, allowing just one run through 18 innings of work. Someone needs to fill in for Spencer Strider, and Lopez is doing his best.
Carlos Rodón’s Slider
Rodon got shaken up a bit in this one, surrendering three runs over just four innings of work, but he did record five strikeouts including this punch out of Isiah Kiner-Falefa on a slider. On the season Rodon has just a 20 percent K-rate and a 5.17 xFIP.
Jared Jones‘ Fastball
Jared Jones is someone to watch this year. He currently has a 36.4 percent strikeout rate on the season, which has allowed him to rack up a total of 32 strikeouts, just two shy of Tyler Glasnow for the most in MLB. He allowed just one hit to the Mets and struck out seven, including this 98 mph heater to Fransisco Alvarez.
Logan Gilbert’s Splitter
Logan Gilbert’s splitter is something special. This thing looked like it was about to land right in the middle of the zone before breaking towards the dirt at the last second. The right-hander’s numbers look stellar so far on the year. He currently has a 29 percent strikeout rate and a 3.06 xFIP. Gilbert is tied for sixth in the league with 29 strikeouts.
Andres Muñoz’s Sinker
Muñoz is one of the most feared relievers in the game. His 35.5 percent K-rate makes it almost impossible for hitters to get contact which is evident here on this pitch to Jonathan India to end the eighth inning. This was the second time this year that Muñoz has struck out the side.
Hunter Greene’s Slider
We will finish it off with a slider from Hunter Greene which was one of eight punch-outs for the right-hander in this one. The Mariners have been striking out at one of the highest rates in the league this year, so it was unsurprising to see Greene and his 32.6 percent whiff rate dominate this Seattle lineup through just four innings.