One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
De Jong's slider moves 27.4 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
79 thrown, averaging 83.5 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off De Jong's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 96.0 mph, against 87.1 off his slider.
85 and 79 of them thrown.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
De Jong's 4-seam fastball carries 18.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
85 thrown, averaging 92.1 mph.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
De Jong averages 85.9 mph across his arsenal, 11th percentile in the league.
225 pitches in 2023. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 688th in MLB.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
De Jong throws the slider 48.6% of the time against right-handers and 9.1% against left-handers.
148 pitches to right-handers, 77 to left-handers.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count De Jong throws a fastball 46.3% of the time, against 32.2% when he is ahead.
67 pitches behind in the count, 59 ahead.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
De Jong releases the ball 6.0 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
225 tracked pitches in 2023.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.1 mph off the bat against De Jong, 22nd percentile.
225 pitches in 2023. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 602nd in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
De Jong puts 59.7% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 44.1% when he is ahead.
67 located pitches behind, 59 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
De Jong works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Curveball and Splitter. The 4-seam fastball is 37.8% of everything he throws.
225 classified pitches in 2023.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
De Jong releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 59 degrees above horizontal and 1.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
225 tracked release points, averaging 6.2 feet off the ground.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.3% of De Jong's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
39 of 225 located pitches.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
De Jong's 4-seam fastball averages 92.1 mph, and has touched 94.0.
85 thrown, 37.8% of his pitches.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
De Jong throws a strike on the first pitch 62.7% of the time.
59 plate appearances started in 2023.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against De Jong projects a .343 average, 32nd percentile.
225 pitches in 2023. 32nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 527th in MLB.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
De Jong's slider spins at 2,440 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
79 thrown in 2023.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
De Jong's slider moves 27.4 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
79 thrown, averaging 83.5 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
De Jong's 4-seam fastball carries 18.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
85 thrown, averaging 92.1 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off De Jong's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 96.0 mph, against 87.1 off his slider.
85 and 79 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
De Jong throws the slider 48.6% of the time against right-handers and 9.1% against left-handers.
148 pitches to right-handers, 77 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
De Jong works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Curveball and Splitter. The 4-seam fastball is 37.8% of everything he throws.
225 classified pitches in 2023.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
De Jong's 4-seam fastball averages 92.1 mph, and has touched 94.0.
85 thrown, 37.8% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
De Jong's slider spins at 2,440 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
79 thrown in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
De Jong averages 85.9 mph across his arsenal, 11th percentile in the league.
225 pitches in 2023. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 688th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count De Jong throws a fastball 46.3% of the time, against 32.2% when he is ahead.
67 pitches behind in the count, 59 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
De Jong puts 59.7% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 44.1% when he is ahead.
67 located pitches behind, 59 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
De Jong throws a strike on the first pitch 62.7% of the time.
59 plate appearances started in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
De Jong releases the ball 6.0 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
225 tracked pitches in 2023.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
De Jong releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 59 degrees above horizontal and 1.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
225 tracked release points, averaging 6.2 feet off the ground.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.1 mph off the bat against De Jong, 22nd percentile.
225 pitches in 2023. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 602nd in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against De Jong projects a .343 average, 32nd percentile.
225 pitches in 2023. 32nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 527th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.3% of De Jong's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
39 of 225 located pitches.
Pirates
Career team 2021–2023