This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Hughes goes to the slider: 58.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 33.9% the rest of the time.
93 two-strike pitches in 2024.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .453 expected average against them, against .329 on his breaking balls.
209 of his fastballs thrown.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Hughes's sinker moves 120.9 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
94 thrown, averaging 92.5 mph.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Hughes releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.3 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
350 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Hughes's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 90.6 mph, against 83.5 off his slider.
115 and 141 of them thrown.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Hughes throws a fastball 73.4% of the time, against 44.2% when he is ahead.
109 pitches behind in the count, 95 ahead.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Hughes projects a .418 average, 2nd percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 2nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 750th in MLB.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Hughes's 4-seam fastball carries 14.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
115 thrown, averaging 92.4 mph.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Hughes works off the plate, with only 42.6% of his pitches in the zone, 19th percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 622nd in MLB.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Hughes throws 47.2% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 41.4% with the bases empty.
72 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 278 with the bases empty.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Hughes puts 40.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 45.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
218 pitches to right-handed hitters, 132 to left-handed hitters.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Hughes throws the slider 50.8% of the time against left-handers and 33.9% against right-handers.
218 pitches to right-handers, 132 to left-handers.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Hughes puts 57.8% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 34.7% when he is ahead.
109 located pitches behind, 95 ahead.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
16.3% of Hughes's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
57 of 350 located pitches.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Hughes is weak: 86.5 mph off the bat on average, 81st percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 81st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 145th in MLB.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Hughes works with 3 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball and Sinker. The slider is 40.3% of everything he throws.
350 classified pitches in 2024.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Hughes's stuff spins at 2,385 rpm, 73rd percentile in the league.
350 pitches in 2024. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 208th in MLB.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Hughes averages 88.2 mph across his arsenal, 34th percentile in the league.
350 pitches in 2024. 34th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 504th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Hughes's 4-seam fastball averages 92.4 mph, and has touched 94.2.
115 thrown, 32.9% of his pitches.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Hughes lands 46.4% of his fastballs in the zone and only 36.9% of his breaking balls.
209 of his fastballs, 141 of his breaking balls.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Hughes's slider spins at 2,500 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
141 thrown in 2024.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Hughes releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
350 tracked pitches in 2024.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.6 mph separates Hughes's sinker from his slider, 92.5 against 82.0.
94 and 141 of them respectively.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Hughes throws a strike on the first pitch 61.4% of the time.
88 plate appearances started in 2024.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
41.1% of the contact Hughes gives up is hit hard, 38th percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 38th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 474th in MLB.
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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 Hughes goes to the slider: 58.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 33.9% the rest of the time.
93 two-strike pitches in 2024.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Hughes throws a fastball 73.4% of the time, against 44.2% when he is ahead.
109 pitches behind in the count, 95 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Hughes puts 57.8% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 34.7% when he is ahead.
109 located pitches behind, 95 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Hughes throws a strike on the first pitch 61.4% of the time.
88 plate appearances started in 2024.
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 .453 expected average against them, against .329 on his breaking balls.
209 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Hughes lands 46.4% of his fastballs in the zone and only 36.9% of his breaking balls.
209 of his fastballs, 141 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Hughes's sinker moves 120.9 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
94 thrown, averaging 92.5 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Hughes's 4-seam fastball carries 14.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
115 thrown, averaging 92.4 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Hughes releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.3 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
350 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Hughes releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
350 tracked pitches in 2024.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Hughes's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 90.6 mph, against 83.5 off his slider.
115 and 141 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Hughes throws the slider 50.8% of the time against left-handers and 33.9% against right-handers.
218 pitches to right-handers, 132 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Hughes works with 3 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball and Sinker. The slider is 40.3% of everything he throws.
350 classified pitches in 2024.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Hughes's 4-seam fastball averages 92.4 mph, and has touched 94.2.
115 thrown, 32.9% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Hughes's slider spins at 2,500 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
141 thrown in 2024.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.6 mph separates Hughes's sinker from his slider, 92.5 against 82.0.
94 and 141 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Hughes projects a .418 average, 2nd percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 2nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 750th in MLB.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Hughes is weak: 86.5 mph off the bat on average, 81st percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 81st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 145th in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
41.1% of the contact Hughes gives up is hit hard, 38th percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 38th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 474th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Hughes works off the plate, with only 42.6% of his pitches in the zone, 19th percentile.
350 pitches in 2024. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 622nd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Hughes throws 47.2% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 41.4% with the bases empty.
72 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 278 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Hughes puts 40.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 45.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
218 pitches to right-handed hitters, 132 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
16.3% of Hughes's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
57 of 350 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Hughes's stuff spins at 2,385 rpm, 73rd percentile in the league.
350 pitches in 2024. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 208th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Hughes averages 88.2 mph across his arsenal, 34th percentile in the league.
350 pitches in 2024. 34th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2024, 504th in MLB.
Cubs
Career team 2022–2023