Faster and higher (spin rate)

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a post on Twitter. The post was about a pitcher who threw really hard in 2022 and his fastballs frequently touched triple digits. Well, in today’s baseball games, it’s not rare to see some pitchers throw pitches that reach triple digits. However, after seeing the post, I was just thinking about which pitchers frequently throw pitches with high velocity and high spin-rate.

To understand a little bit more, I went to check on the statcast website. And, I found some pitchers, who threw a lot of pitches with 95+ mph and 2500+ rpm.

After winning the 2021 NL Cy Young award, Corbin Burnes didn’t stop. In the 2022 season, he made 33 starts, posting a great 2.94 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP in 202 innings. Additionally, he led the NL with 243 strikeouts. During the regular season, he threw more than 3000 pitches. Among those 3000+ pitches, more than 30% of them reached 95 mph or higher with a spin rate of 2500 rpm or higher. Burnes’ cutter is a nightmare for many MLB hitters. He threw his cutter more than 1800 times last season and more than 800 cutters reached 95+ mph and spun at a rate of 2500+ rpm. In addition, Dylan Cease finished 2nd in the 2022 AL Cy Young voting. Last year, he owned a great 2.20 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP over 184 innings. Opponents only batted .190 against him. Cease threw 3000+ pitches in 2022 as well. Among those 3000+ pitches, nearly 700 of them reached 95+ mph and spun at a rate of 2500+ rpm. In particular, Cease used his four-seamer nearly 40% of the time last year and more than 50% of those 4-seamers reached 95+ mph and spun at a rate of 2500+ rpm. Moreover, Emmanuel Clase led the majors with 42 saves in 2022. He posted a 1.36 ERA and a 0.73 WHIP in 72.2 innings. Opponents only batted .167 against him. He was selected to the All-Star game for the first time in his career. Clase used his cutter nearly 60% of the time. Among those cutters, more than 500 of them reached 95+ mph with a spin rate of 2500 rpm or higher. In 2022, the average velocity of his cutter was 99.5 mph and the average spin rate was 2653 rpm. Finally, Ryan Helsley made 54 relief appearances for the Cardinals in 2022. He owned a 1.25 ERA and a 0.74 WHIP over 64.2 innings. Helsley became an All-Star last season. He used his 4-seamer more than 50% of the time during the regular season. In particular, 500+ of his four-seamers reached 95+ mph and spun at a rate of 2500+ rpm. Furthermore, Michael Kopech threw 500 four-seam fastballs that were 95+ mph and 2500+ rpm last year. While reviewing the stats, it truly shows that Corbin Burnes’ cutter is quite special. His cutter frequently touches 95+ mph with a spin rate of 2500 rpm or more. In the 2023 season, it will be very interesting to see whether MLB batters will find a solution to Corbin Burnes’ cutter.