One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .396 expected average against them, against .264 on his breaking balls.
459 of his fastballs thrown.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Machado's sinker moves 119.8 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
223 thrown, averaging 96.0 mph.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Machado goes to the 4-seam fastball: 43.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 25.1% the rest of the time.
225 two-strike pitches in 2023.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Machado's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 94.6 mph, against 82.4 off his changeup.
236 and 213 of them thrown.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Machado averages 93.4 mph across his arsenal, 94th percentile in the league.
775 pitches in 2023. 94th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 47th in MLB.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Machado throws the changeup 45% of the time against left-handers and 13.6% against right-handers.
433 pitches to right-handers, 342 to left-handers.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Machado releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 29 degrees above horizontal and 1.8 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
775 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Machado lives in the strike zone: 48.8% of his pitches are in it, 84th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 84th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 123rd in MLB.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Machado's 4-seam fastball carries 15.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
236 thrown, averaging 96.6 mph.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Machado's 4-seam fastball averages 96.6 mph, and has touched 99.3.
236 thrown, 30.5% of his pitches.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Machado's stuff spins at 1,990 rpm, 9th percentile in the league.
775 pitches in 2023. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 707th in MLB.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Machado is weak: 86.0 mph off the bat on average, 87th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 87th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 103rd in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Machado projects a .365 average, 14th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 670th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Machado puts 59.5% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 42.2% when he is ahead.
215 located pitches behind, 218 ahead.
He lives on one side of the plate
Machado works away from right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.3 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
775 located pitches in 2023.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Machado works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Sinker, Changeup and Slider. The 4-seam fastball is 30.5% of everything he throws.
775 classified pitches in 2023.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Machado throws 46.6% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 49.8% with the bases empty.
253 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 522 with the bases empty.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Machado releases the ball 6.7 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
775 tracked pitches in 2023.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.4% of Machado's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
135 of 775 located pitches.
Even behind in the count he keeps hitters guessing
Behind in the count Machado throws a fastball 54.4% of the time, against 61% when he is ahead.
215 pitches behind in the count, 218 ahead.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Machado lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.35 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
775 located pitches in 2023.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Machado lands 51.5% of his breaking balls in the zone and only 42.3% of his offspeed pitches.
103 of his breaking balls, 213 of his offspeed pitches.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .396 expected average against them, against .264 on his breaking balls.
459 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Machado lands 51.5% of his breaking balls in the zone and only 42.3% of his offspeed pitches.
103 of his breaking balls, 213 of his offspeed pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Machado's sinker moves 119.8 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
223 thrown, averaging 96.0 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Machado's 4-seam fastball carries 15.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
236 thrown, averaging 96.6 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Machado goes to the 4-seam fastball: 43.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 25.1% the rest of the time.
225 two-strike pitches in 2023.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Machado puts 59.5% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 42.2% when he is ahead.
215 located pitches behind, 218 ahead.
Even behind in the count he keeps hitters guessing
Behind in the count Machado throws a fastball 54.4% of the time, against 61% when he is ahead.
215 pitches behind in the count, 218 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Machado's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 94.6 mph, against 82.4 off his changeup.
236 and 213 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Machado throws the changeup 45% of the time against left-handers and 13.6% against right-handers.
433 pitches to right-handers, 342 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Machado's 4-seam fastball averages 96.6 mph, and has touched 99.3.
236 thrown, 30.5% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Machado works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Sinker, Changeup and Slider. The 4-seam fastball is 30.5% of everything he throws.
775 classified pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Machado averages 93.4 mph across his arsenal, 94th percentile in the league.
775 pitches in 2023. 94th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 47th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Machado releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 29 degrees above horizontal and 1.8 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
775 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Machado releases the ball 6.7 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
775 tracked pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Machado lives in the strike zone: 48.8% of his pitches are in it, 84th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 84th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 123rd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Machado's stuff spins at 1,990 rpm, 9th percentile in the league.
775 pitches in 2023. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 707th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Machado is weak: 86.0 mph off the bat on average, 87th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 87th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 103rd in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Machado projects a .365 average, 14th percentile.
775 pitches in 2023. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 670th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on one side of the plate
Machado works away from right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.3 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
775 located pitches in 2023.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.4% of Machado's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
135 of 775 located pitches.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Machado lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.35 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
775 located pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Machado throws 46.6% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 49.8% with the bases empty.
253 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 522 with the bases empty.
Nationals
Career team 2021–2023