Use of fastballs on the decline
CINCINNATI — As fastball usage has dipped to record lows across Major League Baseball, the Pirates are hardly immune.
In fact, they have been a big part of the trend, one that speaks to how they’ve tried to do things differently under general manager Ben Cherington, manager Derek Shelton and pitching coach Oscar Marin.
According to research done earlier this week by Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci, fastballs have accounted for less than 50% of usage for the first time in MLB history, coming in at 49.7. It continues a downward trend that started at 56.8% in 2015 and reached 51.9% in 2019.
Pirates pitchers threw fastballs 59.3% of the time in 2019, most in MLB. This season, the Pirates are one of a record 17 clubs whose pitchers do not throw fastballs at least half the time, ranking 16th at 49.5%.
It’s the first time in FanGraphs’ available data (2002-present) where they’ve been below 50%. Their drop of 9.8% is also the second-largest behind Boston (minus10.4%), who are throwing fastballs an MLB-low 37.9% of the time.
“There’s obviously a difference in pitching philosophy,” Shelton said. “People are throwing more breaking balls. You’re seeing, especially with elite bullpens and elite staffs, that’s the way the game is trending.
“I think as we continue to have more ways to measure pitching, you’re going to see trends come and go. I think we’re in a very high breaking ball trend right now.”
It should be noted that Verducci’s research does not involve cutters, a fastball-slider hybrid.
One interesting study involves the Pirates starter Friday night, Chad Kuhl. The right-hander has thrown a fastball — either a fourseamer or sinker — 61.1% of the time throughout his career. This year, however, Kuhl is throwing fastballs just 37.6% of the time and relying more on his slider (39.0%) and curveball (19.9%).
Combined, Kuhl is using his spin pitches nearly 30% more than he previously has, which makes sense.
Opposing hitters slugged .226, .188 and .111 on Kuhl’s curveball between 2017-20, excluding 2019 because of Tommy John surgery. In those first two years, they slugged .531 and .547 on his fourseamer, so now he barely throws it while his sinker usage has been tempered.
There are obviously countless other examples around the game — guys prioritizing speed over power — and Shelton agreed that it probably favors some guys more than others, a group that included Kuhl.
“The identification of those guys is what you’re seeing organizations target guys they feel can use their stuff in certain ways,” Shelton said.
“There are some organizations that were probably two, three, maybe four years ahead of this curve.”
It’s not just Kuhl among Pirates starters, either. Steven Brault (50.8%) and Trevor Williams (52.2%) also are throwing their fastballs a career-low percent of the time. Both were at nearly 72% as recently as 2017.
How teams are choosing to attack hitters has had unfortunate consequences. Fewer fastballs has resulted in less hittable stuff from pitchers and less watchable games for fans — unless you’re the type that gets overly excited about seeing walks and strikeouts and not a ton of balls in play, the exception coming when somebody sits on something or the pitcher misses, and the ball goes over the fence.
Verducci cited a July 30 game between the Atlanta Braves and Tampa Bay Rays, in which there were 25 batters who did not put the ball in play. He also found that slugging percentage drops by .094 when hitters face non-fastballs (.387) compared to fastballs (.481). The changes seem to be coming quickly, with 17 teams under 50%.
“Your whole life you kind of get conditioned to think your fastball is your pitch you go to when you’re behind in the count or whatever,” Brault said. “But it just doesn’t have to necessarily be the case.”
Embracing a good idea
The Pirates, in partnership with EMBRACE Pittsburgh, distributed 20,000 “Steel Safe” kits Thursday at PNC Park, the contents of which are designed to aid college students returning to class this fall.
Distributed to representatives from nine universities and colleges in the Greater Pittsburgh region, the packages included hand sanitizer, face masks and a resource guide with tips for maintaining mental well-being while attending school during a global pandemic.
The specific program is called “Unpack U,” which is a Pittsburgh-centric platform funded by the Citrone 33 Foundation. It’s designed to support college students in a variety of ways while ultimately focusing on mental health.
Represented at the event were Carlow University, Carnegie Mellon University, Chatham University, Community College of Allegheny County, Duquesne University, Point Park University, Robert Morris University, Saint Vincent College and Pitt. Representatives from those schools were met throughout the day on the field by Pirates president Travis Williams and his wife, Nikki; the wives of several Pirates players; Gabriella Citrone from the Citrone 33 Foundation and others.
Makeup schedule
MLB announced Friday how the St. Louis Cardinals will make up their postponed series, including one earlier this week with the Pirates. The three-game set actually will be made up as part of two doubleheaders.
The first will be played 3:15 p.m. Aug. 27 at Busch Stadium. That takes care of the games Aug. 10-11. The second will be played 4:05 p.m. Sept. 18. The Pirates will be the home team for the first game, which originally was scheduled. The Cardinals will be the home team for the second, which will make up the game from Aug. 12.