His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball averages 89.0 mph, and has touched 91.6.
150 thrown, 40.3% of his pitches.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Smeltzer's sweeper moves 78.1 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
41 thrown, averaging 77.7 mph.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Smeltzer averages 83.5 mph across his arsenal, 3rd percentile in the league.
372 pitches in 2023. 3rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 750th in MLB.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Smeltzer goes to the changeup: 38.5% of his two-strike pitches, against 22.4% the rest of the time.
117 two-strike pitches in 2023.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Smeltzer's curveball leaves the bat at 94.9 mph, against 81.9 off his sweeper.
55 and 41 of them thrown.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .405 expected average against them, against .328 on his breaking balls.
169 of his fastballs thrown.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Smeltzer throws a strike on the first pitch 68.7% of the time.
99 plate appearances started in 2023.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball carries 14.3 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
150 thrown, averaging 89.0 mph.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Smeltzer projects a .375 average, 10th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 10th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 701st in MLB.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Smeltzer throws the sweeper 29% of the time against left-handers and 2% against right-handers.
248 pitches to right-handers, 124 to left-handers.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Smeltzer releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 36 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
372 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Smeltzer lands 55.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.3% of his offspeed pitches.
169 of his fastballs, 102 of his offspeed pitches.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Smeltzer lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.23 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
372 located pitches in 2023.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Smeltzer throws a fastball 56.1% of the time, against 38.1% when he is ahead.
82 pitches behind in the count, 134 ahead.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
47.4% of the contact Smeltzer gives up is hit hard, 11th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 692nd in MLB.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Smeltzer's stuff spins at 2,087 rpm, 19th percentile in the league.
372 pitches in 2023. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 629th in MLB.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Smeltzer puts 44.4% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 48.4% of his pitches to left-handers.
248 pitches to right-handed hitters, 124 to left-handed hitters.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Smeltzer releases the ball 5.9 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
372 tracked pitches in 2023.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
14.4 mph separates Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball from his curveball, 89.0 against 74.6.
150 and 55 of them respectively.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Smeltzer throws 42.5% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 46.6% with the bases empty.
80 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 292 with the bases empty.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.9 mph off the bat against Smeltzer, 13th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 13th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 677th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Smeltzer puts 56.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 38.8% when he is ahead.
82 located pitches behind, 134 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Smeltzer works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Curveball and Sweeper. The 4-seam fastball is 40.3% of everything he throws.
372 classified pitches in 2023.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Smeltzer's curveball spins at 2,548 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
55 thrown in 2023.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Smeltzer has thrown 18 cutters this season, 4.8% of his pitches, at 83.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
372 classified pitches in 2023.
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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
Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball averages 89.0 mph, and has touched 91.6.
150 thrown, 40.3% of his pitches.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Smeltzer's curveball leaves the bat at 94.9 mph, against 81.9 off his sweeper.
55 and 41 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Smeltzer throws the sweeper 29% of the time against left-handers and 2% against right-handers.
248 pitches to right-handers, 124 to left-handers.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
14.4 mph separates Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball from his curveball, 89.0 against 74.6.
150 and 55 of them respectively.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Smeltzer works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Curveball and Sweeper. The 4-seam fastball is 40.3% of everything he throws.
372 classified pitches in 2023.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Smeltzer's curveball spins at 2,548 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
55 thrown in 2023.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Smeltzer has thrown 18 cutters this season, 4.8% of his pitches, at 83.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
372 classified pitches in 2023.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Smeltzer's sweeper moves 78.1 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
41 thrown, averaging 77.7 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Smeltzer's 4-seam fastball carries 14.3 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
150 thrown, averaging 89.0 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Smeltzer averages 83.5 mph across his arsenal, 3rd percentile in the league.
372 pitches in 2023. 3rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 750th in MLB.
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 Smeltzer goes to the changeup: 38.5% of his two-strike pitches, against 22.4% the rest of the time.
117 two-strike pitches in 2023.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Smeltzer throws a strike on the first pitch 68.7% of the time.
99 plate appearances started in 2023.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Smeltzer throws a fastball 56.1% of the time, against 38.1% when he is ahead.
82 pitches behind in the count, 134 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Smeltzer puts 56.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 38.8% when he is ahead.
82 located pitches behind, 134 ahead.
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 .405 expected average against them, against .328 on his breaking balls.
169 of his fastballs thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Smeltzer lands 55.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 34.3% of his offspeed pitches.
169 of his fastballs, 102 of his offspeed pitches.
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 Smeltzer projects a .375 average, 10th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 10th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 701st in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
47.4% of the contact Smeltzer gives up is hit hard, 11th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 692nd in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.9 mph off the bat against Smeltzer, 13th percentile.
372 pitches in 2023. 13th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 677th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Smeltzer releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 36 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
372 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Smeltzer releases the ball 5.9 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
372 tracked pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Smeltzer lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.23 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
372 located pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Smeltzer's stuff spins at 2,087 rpm, 19th percentile in the league.
372 pitches in 2023. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 629th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Smeltzer puts 44.4% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 48.4% of his pitches to left-handers.
248 pitches to right-handed hitters, 124 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Smeltzer throws 42.5% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 46.6% with the bases empty.
80 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 292 with the bases empty.
Twins
Career team 2019–2022