The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Sale releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 6 degrees above horizontal and 2.8 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
846 tracked release points, averaging 4.8 feet off the ground.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Sale's sinker moves 17.9 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
77 thrown, averaging 95.0 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Sale's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.0 mph, against 80.3 off his slider.
328 and 339 of them thrown.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Sale goes to the slider: 50.9% of his two-strike pitches, against 35.1% the rest of the time.
267 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Sale throws 36.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 44.9% with the bases empty.
144 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 702 with the bases empty.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
16.8 mph separates Sale's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 95.5 against 78.7.
328 and 339 of them respectively.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .332 expected average against them, against .251 on his offspeed pitches.
405 of his fastballs thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Sale throws the sinker 31.3% of the time against left-handers and 0.8% against right-handers.
616 pitches to right-handers, 230 to left-handers.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Sale lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.18 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
846 located pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Sale throws a fastball 58.2% of the time, against 41% when he is ahead.
201 pitches behind in the count, 266 ahead.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Sale averages 87.7 mph across his arsenal, 22nd percentile in the league.
846 pitches in 2026. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 417th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Sale puts 62.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.6% when he is ahead.
201 located pitches behind, 266 ahead.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 31.6% of the contact Sale gives up is hit hard, 83rd percentile.
846 pitches in 2026. 83rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 91st in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Sale's 4-seam fastball averages 95.5 mph, and has touched 99.4.
328 thrown, 38.8% of his pitches.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Sale lands 52.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 38.6% of his breaking balls.
405 of his fastballs, 339 of his breaking balls.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Sale is weak: 86.8 mph off the bat on average, 73rd percentile.
846 pitches in 2026. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 144th in MLB.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.7% of Sale's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
150 of 846 located pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Sale works with 4 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup and Sinker. The slider is 40.1% of everything he throws.
846 classified pitches in 2026.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Sale puts 42.9% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 45.2% of his pitches to left-handers.
616 pitches to right-handed hitters, 230 to left-handed hitters.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Sale throws a strike on the first pitch 63.6% of the time.
217 plate appearances started in 2026.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Sale's 4-seam fastball carries 9.0 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
328 thrown, averaging 95.5 mph.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Sale releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
651 tracked pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Sale's slider spins at 2,441 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
339 thrown in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Sale releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 6 degrees above horizontal and 2.8 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
846 tracked release points, averaging 4.8 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Sale releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
651 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Sale's sinker moves 17.9 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
77 thrown, averaging 95.0 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Sale's 4-seam fastball carries 9.0 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
328 thrown, averaging 95.5 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Sale's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.0 mph, against 80.3 off his slider.
328 and 339 of them thrown.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
16.8 mph separates Sale's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 95.5 against 78.7.
328 and 339 of them respectively.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Sale throws the sinker 31.3% of the time against left-handers and 0.8% against right-handers.
616 pitches to right-handers, 230 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Sale's 4-seam fastball averages 95.5 mph, and has touched 99.4.
328 thrown, 38.8% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Sale works with 4 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup and Sinker. The slider is 40.1% of everything he throws.
846 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Sale's slider spins at 2,441 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
339 thrown in 2026.
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 Sale goes to the slider: 50.9% of his two-strike pitches, against 35.1% the rest of the time.
267 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Sale throws a fastball 58.2% of the time, against 41% when he is ahead.
201 pitches behind in the count, 266 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Sale puts 62.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.6% when he is ahead.
201 located pitches behind, 266 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Sale throws a strike on the first pitch 63.6% of the time.
217 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Sale throws 36.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 44.9% with the bases empty.
144 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 702 with the bases empty.
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 .332 expected average against them, against .251 on his offspeed pitches.
405 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Sale lands 52.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 38.6% of his breaking balls.
405 of his fastballs, 339 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Sale lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.18 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
846 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.7% of Sale's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
150 of 846 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Sale averages 87.7 mph across his arsenal, 22nd percentile in the league.
846 pitches in 2026. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 417th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 31.6% of the contact Sale gives up is hit hard, 83rd percentile.
846 pitches in 2026. 83rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 91st in MLB.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Sale is weak: 86.8 mph off the bat on average, 73rd percentile.
846 pitches in 2026. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 144th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Sale puts 42.9% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 45.2% of his pitches to left-handers.
616 pitches to right-handed hitters, 230 to left-handed hitters.
Braves