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New York Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Hunter Brown bolstering Cy Young candidacy, learning ‘how to separate himself from the rest'
HOUSTON — Forty-five major-league starters have thrown at least 750 four-seam fastballs this season. None has allowed a lower batting average or slugging percentage against the pitch than Hunter Brown, the budding ace and bedrock of a beaten-up Houston Astros pitching staff. Baseball Savant assigns every pitch a run value to measure effectiveness. Brown's four-seam fastball has the second-highest mark in the sport, higher than Paul Skenes' prolific four-seamer, teammate Framber Valdez's sinker or Jacob deGrom's slider. It is, by most public metrics, one of the best pitches in baseball. Advertisement Wednesday evening, Brown abandoned it altogether. He bolstered his American League Cy Young candidacy as a result. Brown reprised his role as the Astros' stopper during their 4-1 win against the Boston Red Sox, shielding his short-handed bullpen to salvage a series win. In doing so, though, Brown exhibited an evolution that will resonate beyond one ballgame in mid-August. Valdez is all but guaranteed to test free agency this winter, where he will command the type of contract this franchise does not give. In his presumed absence, Brown will be the Astros' unquestioned ace, the pitcher to whom an entire team turns for stability every fifth day. Those who thrive in the role are remarkable adapters, either on days without their best stuff or when an opponent takes away what makes them great. Brown faced both circumstances Wednesday. 'That's how you separate yourself from the rest,' manager Joe Espada said. 'You have to be able to pick that up, go in the video room and (see), 'What are they doing against this pitch?' … It's the difference in the maturity of Hunter Brown.' In Diesel we trust.#BuiltForThis — Houston Astros (@astros) August 14, 2025 Seventeen of Brown's first 32 pitches were four-seam fastballs. Too many of them missed the strike zone to Brown's glove side, enraging an emotional pitcher who perceived something amiss. Brown walked two batters and surrendered two hits during a 22-pitch second inning. Nine of the balls Brown threw were four-seam fastballs. After misfiring on three consecutive ones to Wilyer Abreu, Brown stormed off the mound and turned his back before catcher Yainer Diaz could throw him a new baseball. 'His fastball wasn't necessarily working, but we were able to use the rest of his repertoire of pitches to get through the game,' Diaz said through an interpreter. Advertisement Brown did not generate a swing-and-miss until his 32nd pitch, when Connor Wong waved through one of the few wicked four-seamers he threw. Wong struck out, stranded two Red Sox in scoring position and sent Brown into the clubhouse searching for answers. 'You look back when he was probably the best pitcher in the league the first two months of the year — he pitched,' Astros pitching coach Josh Miller said. 'He used his changeup. Used his curveball. He can (pitch) backwards, go forwards. He can still step on the gas and come at you with the hard stuff.' Brown threw 15 four-seam fastballs to the final 18 Boston hitters he faced. Only one touched third base — and Brown balked him from first to second. Throwing more curveballs and changeups against a left-handed-heavy lineup threw off Boston's approach to hunt fastballs. Sixteen of Brown's first 23 starts this season featured at least 37 four-seam fastballs; twelve of them saw Brown throw the pitch at least 40 percent of the time. Brown faced this same Red Sox lineup Aug. 1 and threw 45 four-seamers. The 22 curveballs he spun Wednesday were his third most in a start this season. Boston saw just nine at Fenway Park earlier this month. 'That's just kind of the nature of the game, and you have to be prepared for it. Have to have plan A, B and C to each guy,' Brown said. 'I love that I can lean on a changeup on a given day or lean into my slider/cutter, even with my two-seam, to some guys that maybe I don't want to. 'In the big leagues, you have no choice, really. If you try to do the same thing over and over and it's not working, you're going to find yourself out of the game. Sometimes you just have to flip the script and make an adjustment.' Brown is nowhere near a finished product, a fact his fabulous stats might make some forget. He only entered baseball's elite echelon last May, when he introduced a two-seam fastball to establish an inside presence. That, in turn, made his four-seam fastball more effective. Advertisement 'He just kind of browbeat guys with hard stuff,' Miller said. 'This year, he's learned how to pitch a little bit more, and it's gotten better each start.' Wednesday offered more proof. Brown had nothing near his best stuff but still reached the seventh inning, a byproduct of a more diverse arsenal. He lowered his ERA to 2.45 after 24 starts. Among qualified American League starters, only reigning Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal has a lower one. Presuming the teams stay in rotation, Skubal and Brown are scheduled to oppose each other at Comerica Park next week, offering Brown another chance to separate himself from the rest. 'He's becoming a very big star,' Diaz said. 'We hope he continues that way, and it says a lot of him that he has the repertoire of pitches and the versatility of pitches to be able to use them when something isn't working.' Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
Daily Mail
08-08-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Baseball fans go crazy after 16-year-old with perfect name throws 100mph fastball
A 16-year-old baseball star has left fans stunned after throwing a 100mph fastball for the very first time in his career. Striker Pence took to the mound on Thursday afternoon for the Area Code Baseball Games, which is a six-day showcase of the top players from across the country. The teenager had previously caught attention when his fastball was clocked at 97mph earlier in the year but he blew that out the water with his showing in Long Beach. Footage emerged of Pence - who is a freshman at Santiago High School - launching a 100mph fastball at the event, before doing so six more times in a row. Clips of Pence's impressive fastball swiftly went viral but, despite this, the teenager played it cool when he was interviewed about the milestone after the game. Pence was asked how long he'd been working towards the achievement, to which he said: 'My whole life honestly. 'Everyday, just staying consistent in the weight room, working out. I've been playing since I was six-years-old. I feel like it's earned. Well deserved. 'When I was about 12 or 13, I was always the little guy that threw hard. And then at 14/15, I grew and when I grew I started getting stronger. I haven't slowed down'. The 6 foot 6 inch teenager - who weighs in at 200lbs - is the nephew of former MLB All-Star Hunter Pence, however that's not who he attributes his success to. Instead, Pence said: 'Probably my dad, making sure I'm consistent, keeping me honest and giving everything I have'. The RHP is unsurprisingly ranked as one of the top prospects in the class of 2028 after his impressive displays at the mound in recent months. Fans were left in awe of Pence's 100mph fastballs and quickly took to X to share their reaction - as well as offering advice to the teenager. Fans swiftly took to social media to share their reaction to the stunning footage One user who was stunned at the footage, as he simply wrote: 'Dude whaaat' Another said: 'Don't ruin his arm... limit the # of games'. Another jokingly wrote: 'He hit my son with a fastball this summer and he lived to talk about it [laughing emoji]. Finally, one user said: 'The pitching renaissance the next 5-10 years is gonna be unprecedented'.
Yahoo
06-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Where Lourdes Gurriel Jr. ranks on the 5 fastest pitches hit for HR
When the San Diego Padres gave up two of their top-3 prospects at the deadline in order to acquire flamethrower Mason Miller from the A's, it was a bold move that was informed by history. Basically, it's super difficult to get an extra-base hit off velocity of 102-plus mph, and Miller consistently gets there with his fastball. But no pitcher is invincible no matter how hard he throws. And Diamondbacks outfielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. proved just that on Tuesday night when he tied the game in the eighth inning by crushing Miller's 103.9 mph fastball for a two-run homer. To put that homer into perspective, no home run had been hit this season on a pitch exceeding 102 mph until Tuesday. Among the 15 fastest pitches thrown this season, 13 of them belonged to Miller. And only one homer on a pitch exceeding 103 mph had been previously hit in the Statcast era. But where did Gurriel's homer rank among the fastest pitches hit for a home run in the Statcast era? Let's take a look. 5. Kurt Suzuki - 102.6 mph off Aroldis Chapman on June 18, 2016 4. Rafael Devers - 102.8 mph off Aroldis Chapman on Aug. 13, 2017 3. Josh Bell - 102.9 mph off Aroldis Chapman on Aug. 2, 2024 2. Ian Happ - 103.2 mph off Mason Miller on Sept. 17, 2024 1. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. - 103.9 mph off Mason Miller on Aug. 5, 2025 That's right: Gurriel's home run from Tuesday was off the fastest pitch hit for a homer in the Statcast era (tracking began in 2008). But given that Miller and Chapman have record-breaking velocity, it's almost certain that Gurriel hit the fastest pitch for a home run in any era. This article originally appeared on For The Win: Where Lourdes Gurriel Jr. ranks on the 5 fastest pitches hit for HR
Yahoo
06-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Diamondbacks' Lourdes Gurriel Jr. sets record by hitting home run off 103.9-mph pitch
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. took his time. The Arizona Diamondbacks designated hitter didn't swing at the first two pitches he saw from San Diego Padres reliever Mason Miller — a fastball that registered at 102 miles per hour for a ball and an 89-mph slider — with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning Tuesday night in Phoenix. The Cuban-American batter then fouled off the next four pitches, three of which were fastballs thrown between 101 and 104 mph. Miller's seventh pitch of the at-bat was another scorcher, but Gurriel made contact and this time kept the ball in fair territory. It traveled 439 feet and landed in the left-field stands for a two-run home run. Miller's pitch was clocked at 103.9 mph, making it the fastest pitch to be hit for a home run since MLB started pitch tracking in 2008. "It's something that just happened,' Gurriel said after the game through an interpreter. Miller said of the pitch: 'Location could have been better, for sure. Ultimately, the result is what it is. I'm not going to sit here and regret what pitch I threw. Just got it out over the plate, a little bit high.' Gurriel's blast, which left the park at 107.1 mph, tied the game at 5-5. Unfortunately for the Diamondbacks, they couldn't keep up the momentum against their National League West rivals and eventually lost 10-5 in 11 innings. Read more: Hernández: Mookie Betts sounds depressed, but he isn't giving up on snapping his hitting slump 'The real meaning was in the time of the game and what it meant to the team to tie the ballgame. That was the most important thing,' Gurriel said of his historic homer. 'I mean, unfortunately, it didn't turn into a win, but that was the most exciting thing.' It was Gurriel's second home run of the game — he also hit a two-run homer off Padres starter Yu Darvish in the first inning — and his 14th of the season. Before Tuesday, Gurriel had not hit a home run since July 1. Gurriel is the ninth player known to hit a home run off a ball thrown at 102 mph or faster and only the second player to do so off a pitch thrown faster than 103 mph. In September, Ian Happ of the Chicago Cubs went yard off a 103.2-mph pitch. Read more: Parking at a Padres game was a bargain. Now the cost rivals that of Dodger Stadium That pitch also happened to be thrown by Miller, who was with the Athletics at the time before being acquired by the Padres at the trade deadline last week. In his second appearance for San Diego, Miller pitched one inning, giving up one hit and a walk with two strikeouts. One of his pitches was clocked at 104.2 mph, the fastest ever tracked for a Padres pitcher. 'It's a weapon,' Miller said of his fastball after Tuesday's game. 'But you still need to put together an at-bat for the guy, and work with him, as far as his swings and his approach in there." Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
CTV News
30-07-2025
- Sport
- CTV News
Fastball revival: Sport making comeback in rural Southwestern Ontario communities
Once a fixture in every rural Southwestern Ontario town, the sport of fastball is making a comeback. 'Five years ago a bunch of fastball dads said, 'You know what? We need to revive this sport for the kids again,'' said Charles Annett, who is co-coach of the Fingal Storm U20 team with Brent Dawdy. 073025 - FASTBALL REVIVAL ONTARIO Coaches Charles Annett (left) and Brent Dawdy (hitting) have helped revive Fastball in Fingal, Ont. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) In Fingal, a small community in Southwold Township, they've slowly brought the sport back. Just a few years ago they didn't have any youth teams and now they have five. 'It feels really special,' says Benjamin Carr, 20, a shortstop for Fingal Storm U20. 'We get to play our home games on Thursday nights, and there's a lot of kids that come out and watch us wearing a Fingal jersey. It feels cool to be a role model for them, and also to bring fastball back to these rural communities to represent Southwold and also the Municipality of West Elgin and everywhere else.' This U20 squad is made up of players from all over the region, who came together just after the pandemic to form a team. 'It just feels great to see the sport coming back,' said Eric Van Maanen, the Storm Centrefielder. 'All the young kids playing here in Fingal now which I haven't seen in a long time. For the longest time we were the youngest age group playing fastball.' 073025 - FASTBALL REVIVAL ONTARIO Eric Van Maanen makes a leaping catch in Centrefield during practice in Fingal, Ont. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) For anyone who hasn't seen the sport at a high level, it's a game of speed and power, played on a small field. 'It'll be a very fast game compared to what you're thinking of with MLB,' said Van Maanen. 'Everything's so much closer and smaller. In my opinion, it's faster and more entertaining to watch.' The U20 group which started this revival five years ago, has qualified for the National Championship. They are currently competing in Saskatoon, Sask., with the finals being played Aug. 3. 073025 - FASTBALL REVIVAL ONTARIO The Fingal Storm U20 team is in Saskatoon, Sask. playing in the Canadian Fastball Championships. (Source: Fingal Storm U20) 'This is the first time headed to the Canadian National tournament, and we're really fired up about it,' said Carr. 'We're really close friends and we've been playing together for over six years now, so we built a good relationship with each other, and the chemistry's good.' Annett loves coaching these young men because they have an infectious energy. 'I like the young attitude they have,' said Annett. 'They come to the park every day trying to win ballgames, but they're also learning at the same time. They listen well and they're not afraid to try some adventurous things. Sometimes you got to rein them back in, but this group loves the game as much as the coaches do, and it's kind of fun.' The Storm will play six games before the playoffs begin. 'It's a once in a lifetime experience and they're pretty pumped for it,' said Annett.
