This one hits a bit differently! Fans of our previously daily nastiest pitches articles will be familiar with the content in this new weekly article that covers all the need-to-know highlights of baseball from the past week in GIF form. From cool moments, the nastiest pitches, and the moments you’d want to forget, our GIFs of the week are sure to entertain.
Defensive Wizardry
Mullins’ Fantastic Robbery
Cedric Mullins had himself a game on Sunday as the Orioles’ centerfielder hit a two-run go-ahead home run in the 10th to secure the series victory for the O’s. An inning earlier, Mullins made quite possibly the catch of the year when he went way up over the centerfield wall to bring back a potential game-tying homer. Dominic Canzone would tie the game in the Mariners’ next at-bat as we’ll see later.
Friedl Brings One Back Too
Not to be outdone by Mullins’ fantastic catch, TJ Friedl made an equally impressive grab on Wednesday afternoon. Ramón Laureano drove one deep to center, and despite being a homer in about half of major league parks, it did not have quite enough to escape Great American Ball Park. Friedl saved the Reds a pair of runs with the catch and added three hits of his own on the offensive end as the Reds recorded a 7-2 victory.
Nastiest Pitches
Jordan Romano’s Slider
Jordan Romano returned from the Injured List on Tuesday and promptly returned to his role at the back end of the Blue Jays’ bullpen. He recorded the save in his first game back; striking out two, including Bryce Harper on a filthy breaking ball.
Kenta Maeda’s Splitter
After a rough start to the season, Kenta Maeda has had a fantastic summer. He wasn’t at his sharpest on Wednesday, only lasting four innings, but still managed to punch out six Tigers. He put away Andy Ibáñez here on a splitter that disappeared below the zone.
Grayson Rodriguez’s Changeup
It took Grayson Rodriguez a few rough outings and a trip back to the minors to find his footing, but since his recall to the majors in mid-July the rookie has excelled. His recent domination continued Monday night when he led the Orioles to victory over San Diego. Rodriguez struck out six Padres hitters and made Trent Grisham look foolish on a great change.
Blake Snell’s Curveball
Blake Snell has been one of the hottest pitchers of the second half and nothing about that changed on Wednesday when the lefty carried San Diego to victory over the visiting first-place Orioles. Snell picked up his fourth win in five starts and struck out five on the evening. He sat down Ryan Mountcastle on a great curveball below the zone.
George Kirby’s Sinker
Last week George Kirby produced arguably the best start of his young career tossing nine shutout innings but was saddled with a no-decision as the Mariners’ offense could not push one across in an eventual 1-0 extra-inning loss. His Thursday start wasn’t quite as sharp as the sophomore starter allowed four runs in six innings, but he was picked up by his offense, almost entirely thanks to a five-hit, five-RBI day from Julio Rodríguez. Kirby still managed to show off his great fastball and picked up a strikeout on a great front-door two-seamer.
Top Long Balls
Canzone’s Late Inning Heroics
As promised, we’re revisiting the Sunday matchup between the Orioles and Mariners in Seattle. Just after Cedric Mullins made a game-saving catch, the recently acquired Mariner hit his first home run in a Mariners uniform to tie the game up and force extra innings. Not many balls visit this part of T-Mobile Park, and Canzone emphasized the feat with a great bat flip.
A Crazy Bounce in San Francisco
For the first time this year, the home run section of GIFs of the Week will feature an inside-the-parker. More often than not, an inside-the-park homerun is a result of something crazy and this was no exception as Luke Raley’s fly ball took a perfect carom off the right field wall and rolled along the top of the fence before falling back into play. Raley was able to make the trip around the bases and scored standing up.
Morel’s Walkoff
Expected to be sellers for most of the season, the Cubs got hot just before the trade deadline and convinced the front office to buy. That momentum has carried on throughout the month of August, and the Cubs now occupy the third Wild Card spot and sit just a few games out of the AL Central lead. The Cubs were down two to their cross-town rivals entering the ninth, but Christopher Morel launched a three-run homer into the Chicago night to walk off the White Sox and send Wrigley Field into pandemonium.
Oh, No!
Caught Napping
In Little League, you’re taught to run everything out, and this is exactly why. After an easy comebacker to the mound, A’s pitcher Luis Medina turned his back and took his time with the throw to first and a hustling Ildemaro Vargas beat the ball to the bag.
