The AL Cy Young favorite now has a curveball, and nobody throws it like him
How many pitches does it take to win a Cy Young Award?
Do you need a breaking ball? Do you need an offspeed pitch? Or can you do it with all fastballs, if those fastballs are overpowering enough?
These are the questions Cam Schlittler is making us ask....
Cam Schlittler
This pitcher has a 10.35 ERA ... and a 0.85 ERA. Let's explain
Brayan Bello has a 10.35 ERA. He’s been the least effective starter in baseball. Earlier this season, it got him sent down to Triple-A, despite being relatively early in a six-year contract extension.
Brayan Bello has a 0.85 ERA. He’s been the most effective reliever in baseball. Yes, even more...
Brayan Bello
How Jesús Luzardo blossomed into a frontline pitcher
Cristopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler are co-aces for the Phillies, two of baseball’s top pitchers headlining a dominant rotation.
Those two are supported by Jesús Luzardo, who has pitched like an ace himself and has blossomed into one of the top pitchers in baseball. Acquired from the Marlins during the...
Jesús Luzardo
How Matt Olson became a king of scoops at first base
Matt Olson hates the splits.
Not in the sense of, like, "platoon splits." In the gymnastics sense -- at least, insofar as a 6-foot-4 first baseman can be considered a gymnast.
But that's what catching infield throws is: first base gymnastics. You have to get your body into the right...
Matt Olson
Which 1B are best at receiving throws? New data has the answer
Through the first four-plus months of this season, St. Louis first baseman Alec Burleson has recorded nearly 1,000 putouts. That sounds like a lot of work, and it is; it’s the largest figure of any player in the Majors in 2026. That number, however, encompasses two very different parts of...
Alec Burleson
Freddie Freeman
Matt Olson
How baseball's unorthodox pitchers found their way
These days, pitching sure feels like it's defined by velocity, which continues to tick up.
But there's a small group of pitchers who don't rely on velo at all. They play baseball like it was first designed to be played.
In 1845, the New York Knickerbocker Base Ball Club spelled...
The changes that fueled Gavin Williams' historic stretch
Gavin Williams just recorded one of the most dominant five-game stretches by a starting pitcher in MLB history.
The Guardians right-hander struck out 55 hitters in a five-start span from July 9 through Aug. 2. Only six pitchers have matched Williams' feat this decade: Jacob deGrom, Shane Bieber, Shohei Ohtani,...
Gavin Williams
Philly's new-look lineup bucks baseball tradition. Here's why it works
When the Phillies traded for Luis Arraez at the Deadline, most of the discussion was understandably about how he’d fit into their defensive lineup. All of the moving parts required infielders Bryson Stott, Alec Bohm and Bryce Harper to each move to new positions \-\- along with the more recent...
Luis Arraez
3 plays that show Lombard's all-around impact for Yanks
George Lombard Jr. is obviously off to a great start to his MLB career, and even though we don't want to get ahead of ourselves after only five games, the Yankees' top prospect definitely looks like he's going to be able to impact the game with his bat, with his...
George Lombard Jr.
Did a midseason reinvention give the White Sox another ace reliever?
Here's a trivia question to get us started: Over the last seven weeks, which relief pitchers have the highest strikeout rates?
You've probably already thought of a few names. Yep, you're right, Mason Miller (42.9%) is on the list. So is Seattle's Andrés Muñoz (46.7%). It shouldn't be a shock...
Jordan Hicks
