Every morning, the We Love Baseball crew reviews the Nastiest Pitches from the previous day’s games in glorious high-definition GIFs. We want to bring you the highest caliber of nastiness possible, so if you see a nasty pitch, please tell us about it. You can tweet @PitcherList to let us know and we’ll give you a shout-out here in the article if your tip makes the cut.
As a bonus for PL+ members, let us know about a pitch on the PL+ Discord in the Nasty Pitches Channel, and if your suggestion is included the next day, you’ll be entered into a weekly drawing for a free T-shirt!
Keegan Thompson’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/faintfaroffaustraliancurlew
I’ve got to say… this was a pretty weak slate of games and there weren’t that many nasty pitches to go around. I watched every single CSW pitch from each of the three games and this is what we ended up with. That doesn’t mean we were without some true filth, as Fernando Tatís Jr. found out the hard way three separate times. This was the third of his three strikeouts, which all came on breakers low and away. It’s tough to strike out one of the best hitters in the league, but the Cubs found a recipe for success on Monday night and they stuck to it.
Chris Rodriguez’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/highvacantcrownofthornsstarfish
I didn’t realize Chris Rodriguez was healthy and pitching again. This is an exciting development because he’s got a nasty sinker and a nasty curve, as shown above. This one was never in the zone but that didn’t stop Jorge Soler from whiffing at it anyway.
Hirokazu Sawamura’s Splitter
https://gfycat.com/weesimpleargusfish
I still can’t get over how impressive Hirokazu Sawamura’s splitter is. It averages nearly 92 MPH and sometimes touches 95, all with 28 inches of drop and nearly nine inches of break. This one got a huge whiff from the always dangerous Jesús Aguilar in a critical moment of Monday’s game.
Adam Ottavino’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/imperfectshockingdrake
What’s a Nastiest Pitches article without Adam Ottavino’s slider? It would probably just be named “Some Nasty Pitches from guys not named Adam Ottavino.” Catchy, right?
Zach Pop’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/sickbitterbrontosaurus
The puns you likely have to endure when your name is Zach Pop probably got old a long time ago. I’ll leave the puns for the professionals, but Pop snapped this breaker right past Christian Arroyo, who was not crackling in laughter after being made to look silly.
Rex Brothers‘ Slider
https://gfycat.com/keyhardarmednylonshrimp
Rex Brothers does not pitch in the city of Brothersly love. Instead, he pitches in the Windy city, and wind is what he was feeling after Jake Cronenworth whiffed at this nasty slider to end the fourth inning.
Adbert Alzolay’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/electriccostlycicada
Adbert Alzolay unfortunately left this one with a blister, though he did manage to throw 82 pitches with some impressive sliders. This one to get Brian O’Grady swinging got him out of a huge jam early in the game and kept the Cubs in it.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)
I’m disappointed, Ben. I hit you up on twitter for a MUCH better Chris Rodriguez pitch. His 12th pitch of the outing, top of the 7th, 97mph, top of the zone starting inside with wicked ride that ended up on the outside edge of the plate for a swinging strike.
Not sure it would be the best of this collection, but it would have at least been competitive.
All y’all should check it out if you have MLB.tv.
Sorry man, I didn’t see the tweet. Did you tweet at me or @PitcherList? Next time tag me (@BenBrownPL) and I guarantee it will be noticed.
I did see that pitch and it was a tough choice between that one and the curve. I didn’t choose the sinker because the camera angle didn’t do it any justice. With the curve you can at least clearly see the drop, but all of the movement on the sinker was hidden. Trust me, it was a close call.
Yeah it was that tag (@BenBrownPL). Different handle for me but same person.
I’m not a big twitterer, so maybe I screwed up somewhere, lol.