His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Doval's cutter averages 98.0 mph, and has touched 101.1.
103 thrown, 39.3% of his pitches.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Doval goes to the slider: 41.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 18.5% the rest of the time.
67 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Doval averages 95.2 mph across his arsenal, 98th percentile in the league.
262 pitches in 2026. 98th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 12th in MLB.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Doval lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.15 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
261 located pitches in 2026.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Doval's stuff spins at 2,553 rpm, 93rd percentile in the league.
262 pitches in 2026. 93rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 41st in MLB.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Doval releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 34 degrees above horizontal and 1.5 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
261 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
51.1% of the contact Doval gives up is hit hard, 9th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 490th in MLB.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Doval throws a fastball 83.3% of the time, against 68.1% when he is ahead.
78 pitches behind in the count, 69 ahead.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Doval's slider leaves the bat at 94.6 mph, against 90.2 off his sinker.
64 and 95 of them thrown.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.2 mph off the bat against Doval, 13th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 13th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 465th in MLB.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Doval's cutter carries 10.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
103 thrown, averaging 98.0 mph.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Doval's slider spins at 2,612 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
64 thrown in 2026.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Doval lands 47% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.9% of his breaking balls.
198 of his fastballs, 64 of his breaking balls.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Doval works with 3 pitches: Cutter, Sinker and Slider. The cutter is 39.3% of everything he throws.
262 classified pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Doval puts 51.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.7% when he is ahead.
77 located pitches behind, 69 ahead.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.2% of Doval's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
45 of 261 located pitches.
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Doval lives in the strike zone: 44.1% of his pitches are in it, 64th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 64th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 196th in MLB.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Doval throws a strike on the first pitch 56.7% of the time.
67 plate appearances started in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Doval throws the cutter 45.3% of the time against left-handers and 33.6% against right-handers.
134 pitches to right-handers, 128 to left-handers.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Doval releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
170 tracked pitches in 2026.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Doval projects a .305 average, 70th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 70th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 160th in MLB.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.9 mph separates Doval's cutter from his slider, 98.0 against 88.1.
103 and 64 of them respectively.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Doval's cutter averages 98.0 mph, and has touched 101.1.
103 thrown, 39.3% of his pitches.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Doval's slider leaves the bat at 94.6 mph, against 90.2 off his sinker.
64 and 95 of them thrown.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Doval's slider spins at 2,612 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
64 thrown in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Doval works with 3 pitches: Cutter, Sinker and Slider. The cutter is 39.3% of everything he throws.
262 classified pitches in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Doval throws the cutter 45.3% of the time against left-handers and 33.6% against right-handers.
134 pitches to right-handers, 128 to left-handers.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.9 mph separates Doval's cutter from his slider, 98.0 against 88.1.
103 and 64 of them respectively.
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 Doval goes to the slider: 41.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 18.5% the rest of the time.
67 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Doval throws a fastball 83.3% of the time, against 68.1% when he is ahead.
78 pitches behind in the count, 69 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Doval puts 51.9% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.7% when he is ahead.
77 located pitches behind, 69 ahead.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Doval throws a strike on the first pitch 56.7% of the time.
67 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Doval averages 95.2 mph across his arsenal, 98th percentile in the league.
262 pitches in 2026. 98th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 12th 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
Doval lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.15 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
261 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.2% of Doval's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
45 of 261 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Doval's stuff spins at 2,553 rpm, 93rd percentile in the league.
262 pitches in 2026. 93rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 41st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Doval releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 34 degrees above horizontal and 1.5 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
261 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Doval releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
170 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Too much of the contact against him is loud
51.1% of the contact Doval gives up is hit hard, 9th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 9th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 490th in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.2 mph off the bat against Doval, 13th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 13th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 465th in MLB.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Doval projects a .305 average, 70th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 70th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 160th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Doval's cutter carries 10.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
103 thrown, averaging 98.0 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Doval lands 47% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.9% of his breaking balls.
198 of his fastballs, 64 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Doval lives in the strike zone: 44.1% of his pitches are in it, 64th percentile.
262 pitches in 2026. 64th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 196th in MLB.
Pirates