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.
Logan Webb’s Changeup
Logan Webb tossed eight innings of two-run ball but was denied the victory as his own offense could only score two runs as well. He struck out six and finished off Dominic Fletcher with a great changeup below the zone.
Andrew Heaney’s Slider
Wednesday marked Andrew Heaney’s second consecutive start with 8 Ks as the veteran lefty tossed five shutout innings against the visiting Pirates. Heaney started off his outing with a nasty back-foot slider to get Brian Reynolds in the first.
Sean Manaea’s Sweeper
Sean Manaea struck out nine over seven strong innings in Queens on Wednesday afternoon en route to a Mets’ walk-off victory. Manaea struck out slugger Anthony Santander on a wicked back-foot sweeper.
Garrett Crochet’s Four-Seam Fastball
Lefty phenom Garrett Crochet is apparently no longer allowed to go past the four-inning mark as the White Sox continue to manage his innings. He provided four quality frames on Wednesday and struck out Matt Chapman on a 100 MPH four-seamer at the top of the zone.
Max Fried’s Curveball
The pitching matchup of the day came in the form of Aaron Nola vs Max Fried as the top two teams in the NL East matched up on Wednesday. Fried struck out four and put away Bryce Harper on a nice curve to end the fourth.
Aaron Nola’s Knuckle-Curve
Nola matched Fried’s strong performance but did allow the first runs of the game on a two-run homer to Orlando Arcia. Nola bounced back quickly and struck out Ramón Laureano on a great knuckle-curve the following at-bat.
Yariel Rodríguez’s Slider
Yariel Rodríguez got plenty of run support in this one but fell apart in the fifth allowing five runs to the visiting Cincinnati Reds. Before that, he put away Santiago Espinal in the third with a nasty slider.
Andrew Chafin’s Slider
Andrew Chafin was the third of five Texas pitchers as the quintet of Rangers combined for the shutout. Chafin ended the seventh with a slider to Bryan Reynolds that fell off the table.
Colin Selby’s Knuckle-Curve
Colin Selby was the first reliever used by the Orioles on Wednesday and recorded five outs without allowing a run. His lone strikeout came on a knuckle-curve that disappeared below the zone.
Aroldis Chapman’s Sinker
Aroldis Chapman struck out the side in his lone inning of work with all three punchouts coming on his heater. He finished off the inning with a strikeout of Corey Seager with 102 above the zone.
Photos courtesy of Icon Sportswire. Adapted by Kurt Wasemiller (@KUWasemiller on Twitter / @kurt_player02 on Instagram)