He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Lauer puts 37.1% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 48.1% of his pitches to left-handers.
496 pitches to right-handed hitters, 106 to left-handed hitters.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Lauer's 4-seam fastball averages 90.4 mph, and has touched 93.1.
274 thrown, 45.5% of his pitches.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Lauer throws 31.9% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 40.7% with the bases empty.
113 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 489 with the bases empty.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Lauer's 4-seam fastball carries 15.7 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
274 thrown, averaging 90.4 mph.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Lauer averages 86.1 mph across his arsenal, 11th percentile in the league.
602 pitches in 2026. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 478th in MLB.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Lauer throws a fastball 70.8% of the time, against 51.3% when he is ahead.
144 pitches behind in the count, 193 ahead.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Lauer works off the plate, with only 39% of his pitches in the zone, 14th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 460th in MLB.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Lauer's curveball leaves the bat at 90.7 mph, against 84.5 off his cutter.
60 and 100 of them thrown.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Lauer's stuff spins at 2,005 rpm, 10th percentile in the league.
602 pitches in 2026. 10th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 486th in MLB.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Lauer releases the ball 5.8 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
451 tracked pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
15.4 mph separates Lauer's 4-seam fastball from his curveball, 90.4 against 75.0.
274 and 60 of them respectively.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Lauer lands 43.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 28.3% of his offspeed pitches.
374 of his fastballs, 106 of his offspeed pitches.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Lauer goes to the 4-seam fastball: 50.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 43.3% the rest of the time.
179 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Lauer throws the slider 29.2% of the time against left-handers and 6.2% against right-handers.
496 pitches to right-handers, 106 to left-handers.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Lauer's changeup moves 10.8 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
106 thrown, averaging 83.4 mph.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Lauer puts 56.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 39.9% when he is ahead.
144 located pitches behind, 193 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Lauer works with 5 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Cutter and Slider, and a little else. The 4-seam fastball is 45.5% of everything he throws.
602 classified pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18.1% of Lauer's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
109 of 602 located pitches.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Lauer throws a strike on the first pitch 64.4% of the time.
163 plate appearances started in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Lauer releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 46 degrees above horizontal and 1.5 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
602 tracked release points, averaging 6.0 feet off the ground.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.3 mph off the bat against Lauer, 37th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 37th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 341st in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
42% of the contact Lauer gives up is hit hard, 38th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 38th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 333rd in MLB.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Lauer's curveball spins at 2,396 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
60 thrown in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Lauer puts 37.1% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 48.1% of his pitches to left-handers.
496 pitches to right-handed hitters, 106 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Lauer's 4-seam fastball averages 90.4 mph, and has touched 93.1.
274 thrown, 45.5% of his pitches.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Lauer's curveball leaves the bat at 90.7 mph, against 84.5 off his cutter.
60 and 100 of them thrown.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
15.4 mph separates Lauer's 4-seam fastball from his curveball, 90.4 against 75.0.
274 and 60 of them respectively.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Lauer throws the slider 29.2% of the time against left-handers and 6.2% against right-handers.
496 pitches to right-handers, 106 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Lauer works with 5 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Changeup, Cutter and Slider, and a little else. The 4-seam fastball is 45.5% of everything he throws.
602 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Lauer's curveball spins at 2,396 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
60 thrown in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Lauer throws 31.9% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 40.7% with the bases empty.
113 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 489 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Lauer's 4-seam fastball carries 15.7 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
274 thrown, averaging 90.4 mph.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Lauer's changeup moves 10.8 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
106 thrown, averaging 83.4 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Lauer averages 86.1 mph across his arsenal, 11th percentile in the league.
602 pitches in 2026. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 478th 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 Lauer throws a fastball 70.8% of the time, against 51.3% when he is ahead.
144 pitches behind in the count, 193 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Lauer goes to the 4-seam fastball: 50.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 43.3% the rest of the time.
179 two-strike pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Lauer puts 56.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 39.9% when he is ahead.
144 located pitches behind, 193 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Lauer throws a strike on the first pitch 64.4% of the time.
163 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Lauer works off the plate, with only 39% of his pitches in the zone, 14th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 14th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 460th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Lauer's stuff spins at 2,005 rpm, 10th percentile in the league.
602 pitches in 2026. 10th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 486th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Lauer releases the ball 5.8 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
451 tracked pitches in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Lauer releases the ball from a three-quarters slot, about 46 degrees above horizontal and 1.5 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
602 tracked release points, averaging 6.0 feet off the ground.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Lauer lands 43.3% of his fastballs in the zone and only 28.3% of his offspeed pitches.
374 of his fastballs, 106 of his offspeed pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
18.1% of Lauer's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
109 of 602 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 89.3 mph off the bat against Lauer, 37th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 37th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 341st in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
42% of the contact Lauer gives up is hit hard, 38th percentile.
602 pitches in 2026. 38th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 333rd in MLB.
Dodgers