In 2023, statcast added sweeper as a new pitch type. During the regular season, lots of pitchers threw nasty sweepers. A few days ago, I watched a game on TV and a pitcher just used his nasty sweeper to punch out several batters. While watching that pitcher’s great performance, I was just wondering if that pitcher threw a lot of sweepers last season.
To understand a little bit more, I decided to check on the statcast website.
Steven Wilson was traded to the White Sox in March 2024. Last season, he made 52 relief appearances for the Padres, posting a 3.91 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP over 53 innings. Sweeper is his key pitch. Last season, he used his sweeper nearly 60% of the time. And his sweeper worked well in 2023. Opponents only bated .165 against Wilson’s sweeper.
Taylor Rogers is an important reliever in the Giants bullpen. He made 60 relief appearances for the Giants in 2023, posting a 3.83 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP over 51.2 innings. Last season, he heavily relied on his sweeper with a usage of 56.5%. Opponents’ batting average against Rogers’ sweeper was just .165. Moreover, he punched out 39 batters via his sweeper.
In addition, Griffin Jax made 71 relief appearances for the Twins in 2023. He owned a 3.86 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP over 65.1 innings. Jax used his sweeper more than 50% of the time last year and opponents only batted .197 against his sweeper. Jax threw 68 strikeouts in 2023 and 47 of those strikeouts came from his sweeper.
Moreover, Tom Cosgrove made it into the big leagues in 2023. He made 54 relief appearances for the Padres last season, posting a 1.75 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP over 51.1 innings. In his rookie season, Cosgrove used his sweeper more than 50% of the time and it worked very well. Opponents only batted .153 against his sweeper. Cosgrove punched out 44 batters last season and 30 of those strikeouts came from his sweeper. At the same time, Yency Almonte was the other pitcher with a sweeper usage over 50% last season. In 2023, Almonte made 49 relief appearances for the Dodgers, posting a 5.06 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP over 48 innings. Well, Almonte’s numbers don’t look impressive. However, his sweeper might be worth watching. Opponents only batted .156 against Almonte’s sweeper.
Last season, there were 5 pitchers who used sweepers more than 50% of the time. And throwing sweepers did work for them. In 2023, the league average spin rate of sweepers was 2552 rpm. Average spin rate of Steven Wilson’s sweepers was over 2600 rpm. Taylor Rogers’ sweepers spun at a rate of 2730 rpm, on average. Griffin Jax throws a sweeper that truly spins a lot. Last season, the average spin rate of Jax’s sweepers was 2960 rpm. Furthermore, the average spin rate of Cosgrove’s sweepers was over 2600 rpm and in 2023, Almonte’s sweepers spun at a rate of 2555 rpm, on average. Without doubt, those pitchers frequently threw sweepers and this pitch did help them get the job done. Nonetheless, the success in 2023 doesn’t guarantee the success in 2024. In the rest of the 2024 season, let’s keep watching if those pitchers will heavily rely on their sweepers. Meanwhile, do MLB hitters find a way to hit against their sweepers?
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