That fastball usage is at near
all-time lows in the big leagues is something we all know pretty well. That, of course, means more breaking and off-speed stuff, more of those frisbee-looking pitches that make us fans wonder “how does anyone ever hit a baseball?” and cause more and more whiffs and slow walks back to the dugout.
This, of course, is old news. Since pitch types have been tracked starting in 2002, the percentage of fastballs (four-seam and sinkers) has steadily gone down from 64.4% in ‘02 to just 50.9% so far in 2021. And the pitch that is the mastermind behind that sharp decrease? The