This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes McGowan goes to the slider: 58.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 24.7% the rest of the time.
309 two-strike pitches in 2017.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his breaking balls: a .417 expected average against them, against .270 on his offspeed pitches.
394 of his breaking balls thrown.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off McGowan's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 90.2 mph, against 76.2 off his changeup.
369 and 82 of them thrown.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
McGowan lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 1.88 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1172 located pitches in 2017.
He cannot find the zone often enough
McGowan works off the plate, with only 38.1% of his pitches in the zone, 7th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 7th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 656th in MLB.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count McGowan throws a fastball 75.7% of the time, against 33.8% when he is ahead.
338 pitches behind in the count, 293 ahead.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
McGowan's 4-seam fastball carries 14.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
369 thrown, averaging 93.8 mph.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
McGowan throws the slider 42.3% of the time against right-handers and 19% against left-handers.
735 pitches to right-handers, 437 to left-handers.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
McGowan averages 91.0 mph across his arsenal, 77th percentile in the league.
1173 pitches in 2017. 77th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 161st in MLB.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
13.8% of McGowan's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
162 of 1172 located pitches.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
McGowan puts 53% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 23.2% when he is ahead.
338 located pitches behind, 293 ahead.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
McGowan releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 37 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1172 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
44% of the contact McGowan gives up is hit hard, 14th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 608th in MLB.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
McGowan puts 39.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 35.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
735 pitches to right-handed hitters, 438 to left-handed hitters.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
McGowan works with 4 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball, Sinker and Changeup. The slider is 33.6% of everything he throws.
1172 classified pitches in 2017.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
McGowan lands 43.2% of his fastballs in the zone and only 28% of his offspeed pitches.
696 of his fastballs, 82 of his offspeed pitches.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against McGowan projects a .378 average, 28th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 28th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 507th in MLB.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
McGowan's sinker moves 9.4 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
327 thrown, averaging 93.8 mph.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 88.7 mph off the bat against McGowan, 29th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 29th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 501st in MLB.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
McGowan releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
1172 tracked pitches in 2017.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
McGowan's 4-seam fastball averages 93.8 mph, and has touched 96.0.
369 thrown, 31.5% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
McGowan's slider spins at 2,304 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
394 thrown in 2017.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
7.1 mph separates McGowan's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 93.8 against 86.7.
369 and 394 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 McGowan goes to the slider: 58.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 24.7% the rest of the time.
309 two-strike pitches in 2017.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count McGowan throws a fastball 75.7% of the time, against 33.8% when he is ahead.
338 pitches behind in the count, 293 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
McGowan puts 53% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 23.2% when he is ahead.
338 located pitches behind, 293 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 breaking balls: a .417 expected average against them, against .270 on his offspeed pitches.
394 of his breaking balls thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
McGowan lands 43.2% of his fastballs in the zone and only 28% of his offspeed pitches.
696 of his fastballs, 82 of his offspeed pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off McGowan's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 90.2 mph, against 76.2 off his changeup.
369 and 82 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
McGowan throws the slider 42.3% of the time against right-handers and 19% against left-handers.
735 pitches to right-handers, 437 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
McGowan works with 4 pitches: Slider, 4-Seam Fastball, Sinker and Changeup. The slider is 33.6% of everything he throws.
1172 classified pitches in 2017.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
McGowan's 4-seam fastball averages 93.8 mph, and has touched 96.0.
369 thrown, 31.5% of his pitches.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
McGowan's slider spins at 2,304 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
394 thrown in 2017.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
7.1 mph separates McGowan's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 93.8 against 86.7.
369 and 394 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
McGowan lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 1.88 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
1172 located pitches in 2017.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
13.8% of McGowan's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
162 of 1172 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
McGowan works off the plate, with only 38.1% of his pitches in the zone, 7th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 7th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 656th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
McGowan's 4-seam fastball carries 14.4 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
369 thrown, averaging 93.8 mph.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
McGowan's sinker moves 9.4 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
327 thrown, averaging 93.8 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
McGowan averages 91.0 mph across his arsenal, 77th percentile in the league.
1173 pitches in 2017. 77th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 161st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
McGowan releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 37 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
1172 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
McGowan releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
1172 tracked pitches in 2017.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Too much of the contact against him is loud
44% of the contact McGowan gives up is hit hard, 14th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 608th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against McGowan projects a .378 average, 28th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 28th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 507th in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 88.7 mph off the bat against McGowan, 29th percentile.
1173 pitches in 2017. 29th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2017, 501st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
McGowan puts 39.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 35.5% of his pitches to left-handers.
735 pitches to right-handed hitters, 438 to left-handed hitters.
Blue Jays
Career team 2005–2014