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.
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Michael King’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/bogusslimydiscus
Held to just four hits last night, the Yankees needed another flawless performance from their pen and they got it. King snapped off a nasty curveball to strike out Manny Margot for the second out of the ninth to keep the score tied at 1-1. So far his hook has been tremendous and has held enemy batters to just a .238 wOBA while returning a whiff rate of 48.2%.
Joe Musgrove’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/closedzanykissingbug
Andrelton Simmons is one of the tougher bats in baseball to strike out with a 9.5% career K rate. But he had no chance against Musgrove’s last pitch of the afternoon, this vicious slider for strikeout number nine.
José Alvarado’s Sinker
https://gfycat.com/gravehiddenchital
Recently called back up from Triple-A Leigh Valley, Alvarado was the mop-up man as he recorded the final three outs of the Phillies’ 10-1 bludgeoning of the Nationals. He may have an ERA of 7.80 this year, but Josh Bell gets a firsthand look at what makes the southpaw such an intriguing talent; A 102 MPH sinker. Now if only he could locate it like this more often.
Emmanuel Clase’s Cutter
https://gfycat.com/respectfulglisteningisabellinewheatear
We can do this! thought Rockies fans. Clase allowed a pair of singles to put the tying runs on base before reminding the Rockies why he’s one of the best. He retired Charlie Blackmon on a flyout to center for the first out before tossing this unhittable cutter to Brendan Rodgers who eventually bounced into the game-ending double play. Nope, never mind. Maybe next time.
Edwin Díaz’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/phonysmugbichonfrise
A double from Tyrone Taylor nearly saddled Díaz with a blown save last night but a good relay throw to toss out Hunter Renfroe trying to score preserved the lead. Then with the tying run ninety feet away, Díaz nailed the save by making the former MVP Christian Yelich look helpless on this disgusting slider.
Kevin Gausman’s Splitter
https://gfycat.com/ornateselfrelianthydra
Gausman had a rough outing yesterday against his former team. Still, his splitter will always have its moments, like this one to punch out rookie Tyler Nevin leading off the second.
Seth Lugo’s Curveball
https://gfycat.com/hopefulwindyblackrussianterrier
Lugo has always had a beautiful curveball. This year it’s held batters to just a .173 wOBA. Tasked with keeping the game tied at 4-4, Lugo unleashed a perfectly located hook to sit down Hunter Renfroe for the first out of the seventh.
Shohei Ohtani’s Slider
https://gfycat.com/thankfulsilentdotterel
We’ll end with Ohtani, who had his slider working last night. Here he gets the rookie Julio Rodríguez looking thoroughly confused for the second out of the first.
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns of Twitter)