This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Festa goes to the changeup: 44.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 22.9% the rest of the time.
254 two-strike pitches in 2025.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his breaking balls: a .403 expected average against them, against .240 on his offspeed pitches.
236 of his breaking balls thrown.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Festa's changeup moves 94.9 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
256 thrown, averaging 87.8 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Festa's 4-seam fastball carries 18.6 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
278 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Festa's sinker leaves the bat at 92.2 mph, against 85.7 off his changeup.
112 and 256 of them thrown.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Festa releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 32 degrees above horizontal and 2.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
882 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Festa lands 56.2% of his fastballs in the zone and only 32.8% of his offspeed pitches.
390 of his fastballs, 256 of his offspeed pitches.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Festa lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.20 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
882 located pitches in 2025.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Festa throws a fastball 49.3% of the time, against 33.8% when he is ahead.
229 pitches behind in the count, 275 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Festa works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Slider and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 31.5% of everything he throws.
882 classified pitches in 2025.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Festa releases the ball 6.9 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
882 tracked pitches in 2025.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Festa throws the slider 35.2% of the time against right-handers and 18.5% against left-handers.
438 pitches to right-handers, 444 to left-handers.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Festa puts 57.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 39.3% when he is ahead.
229 located pitches behind, 275 ahead.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Festa's slider spins at 2,594 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
236 thrown in 2025.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Festa averages 90.5 mph across his arsenal, 65th percentile in the league.
882 pitches in 2025. 65th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 276th in MLB.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Festa throws a strike on the first pitch 64.8% of the time.
230 plate appearances started in 2025.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.7 mph off the bat against Festa, 34th percentile.
882 pitches in 2025. 34th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 514th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Festa's 4-seam fastball averages 94.1 mph, and has touched 96.7.
278 thrown, 31.5% of his pitches.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Festa projects a .343 average, 39th percentile.
882 pitches in 2025. 39th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 479th in MLB.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
6.6 mph separates Festa's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 94.1 against 87.6.
278 and 236 of them respectively.
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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 Festa goes to the changeup: 44.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 22.9% the rest of the time.
254 two-strike pitches in 2025.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Festa throws a fastball 49.3% of the time, against 33.8% when he is ahead.
229 pitches behind in the count, 275 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Festa puts 57.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 39.3% when he is ahead.
229 located pitches behind, 275 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Festa throws a strike on the first pitch 64.8% of the time.
230 plate appearances started in 2025.
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 .403 expected average against them, against .240 on his offspeed pitches.
236 of his breaking balls thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Festa lands 56.2% of his fastballs in the zone and only 32.8% of his offspeed pitches.
390 of his fastballs, 256 of his offspeed pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Festa's changeup moves 94.9 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
256 thrown, averaging 87.8 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Festa's 4-seam fastball carries 18.6 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
278 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Festa's sinker leaves the bat at 92.2 mph, against 85.7 off his changeup.
112 and 256 of them thrown.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Festa works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Slider and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 31.5% of everything he throws.
882 classified pitches in 2025.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Festa throws the slider 35.2% of the time against right-handers and 18.5% against left-handers.
438 pitches to right-handers, 444 to left-handers.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Festa's slider spins at 2,594 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
236 thrown in 2025.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Festa's 4-seam fastball averages 94.1 mph, and has touched 96.7.
278 thrown, 31.5% of his pitches.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
6.6 mph separates Festa's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 94.1 against 87.6.
278 and 236 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Festa releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 32 degrees above horizontal and 2.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
882 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Festa releases the ball 6.9 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
882 tracked pitches in 2025.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Festa lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.20 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
882 located pitches in 2025.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Festa averages 90.5 mph across his arsenal, 65th percentile in the league.
882 pitches in 2025. 65th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 276th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.7 mph off the bat against Festa, 34th percentile.
882 pitches in 2025. 34th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 514th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Festa projects a .343 average, 39th percentile.
882 pitches in 2025. 39th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2025, 479th in MLB.
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Career team 2024–2025