One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Bender's sweeper moves 20.1 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
278 thrown, averaging 83.5 mph.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Bender goes to the sweeper: 63.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 45.8% the rest of the time.
174 two-strike pitches in 2026.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Bender's sinker averages 96.4 mph, and has touched 99.0.
171 thrown, 31.7% of his pitches.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Bender releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 26 degrees above horizontal and 1.9 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
539 tracked release points, averaging 5.4 feet off the ground.
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Bender lives in the strike zone: 47.8% of his pitches are in it, 90th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 90th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 57th in MLB.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Bender throws a fastball 45% of the time, against 23.2% when he is ahead.
131 pitches behind in the count, 168 ahead.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Bender's stuff spins at 2,598 rpm, 96th percentile in the league.
272 pitches in 2026. 96th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 24th in MLB.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Bender releases the ball 5.6 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
462 tracked pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Bender's sweeper spins at 2,860 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
278 thrown in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Bender throws the sweeper 62.6% of the time against right-handers and 38.4% against left-handers.
294 pitches to right-handers, 245 to left-handers.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Bender projects a .287 average, 84th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 84th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 89th in MLB.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Bender lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.29 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
539 located pitches in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Bender works with 3 pitches: Sweeper, Sinker and Slider. The sweeper is 51.6% of everything he throws.
539 classified pitches in 2026.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Bender averages 88.5 mph across his arsenal, 33rd percentile in the league.
272 pitches in 2026. 33rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 359th in MLB.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his breaking balls: a .297 expected average against them, against .264 on his fastballs.
170 of his breaking balls thrown.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
12.8 mph separates Bender's sinker from his sweeper, 96.4 against 83.5.
171 and 278 of them respectively.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Bender puts 46.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 49.2% of his pitches to left-handers.
150 pitches to right-handed hitters, 122 to left-handed hitters.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 34.9% of the contact Bender gives up is hit hard, 71st percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 71st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 157th in MLB.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Bender throws a strike on the first pitch 62.6% of the time.
139 plate appearances started in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
21.7% of Bender's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
117 of 539 located pitches.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Bender puts 61.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 53% when he is ahead.
131 located pitches behind, 168 ahead.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.4 mph off the bat against Bender, 36th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 36th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 345th in MLB.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Bender has thrown 12 changeups this season, 2.2% of his pitches, at 88.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
539 classified pitches in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Bender's sweeper moves 20.1 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
278 thrown, averaging 83.5 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 Bender goes to the sweeper: 63.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 45.8% the rest of the time.
174 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Bender throws a fastball 45% of the time, against 23.2% when he is ahead.
131 pitches behind in the count, 168 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Bender throws a strike on the first pitch 62.6% of the time.
139 plate appearances started in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Bender puts 61.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 53% when he is ahead.
131 located pitches behind, 168 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Bender's sinker averages 96.4 mph, and has touched 99.0.
171 thrown, 31.7% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Bender's sweeper spins at 2,860 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
278 thrown in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Bender throws the sweeper 62.6% of the time against right-handers and 38.4% against left-handers.
294 pitches to right-handers, 245 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Bender works with 3 pitches: Sweeper, Sinker and Slider. The sweeper is 51.6% of everything he throws.
539 classified pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
12.8 mph separates Bender's sinker from his sweeper, 96.4 against 83.5.
171 and 278 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Bender has thrown 12 changeups this season, 2.2% of his pitches, at 88.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
539 classified pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Bender releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 26 degrees above horizontal and 1.9 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
539 tracked release points, averaging 5.4 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Bender releases the ball 5.6 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
462 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Bender lives in the strike zone: 47.8% of his pitches are in it, 90th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 90th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 57th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Bender's stuff spins at 2,598 rpm, 96th percentile in the league.
272 pitches in 2026. 96th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 24th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Bender projects a .287 average, 84th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 84th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 89th in MLB.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 34.9% of the contact Bender gives up is hit hard, 71st percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 71st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 157th in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.4 mph off the bat against Bender, 36th percentile.
272 pitches in 2026. 36th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 345th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Bender lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.29 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
539 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
21.7% of Bender's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
117 of 539 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Bender averages 88.5 mph across his arsenal, 33rd percentile in the league.
272 pitches in 2026. 33rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 359th in MLB.
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 breaking balls: a .297 expected average against them, against .264 on his fastballs.
170 of his breaking balls thrown.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Bender puts 46.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 49.2% of his pitches to left-handers.
150 pitches to right-handed hitters, 122 to left-handed hitters.
Marlins