One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Varland's 4-seam fastball carries 18.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
143 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his breaking balls: a .409 expected average against them, against .328 on his fastballs.
121 of his breaking balls thrown.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
54% of the contact Varland gives up is hit hard, 4th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 4th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 514th in MLB.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Varland works with 2 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball and Slider. The 4-seam fastball is 53.2% of everything he throws.
269 classified pitches in 2026.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Varland averages 91.8 mph across his arsenal, 77th percentile in the league.
269 pitches in 2026. 77th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 124th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Varland's 4-seam fastball averages 95.3 mph, and has touched 97.3.
143 thrown, 53.2% of his pitches.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Varland throws 38.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 43.8% with the bases empty.
116 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 153 with the bases empty.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Varland throws a fastball 61.9% of the time, against 50.5% when he is ahead.
63 pitches behind in the count, 93 ahead.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Varland projects a .367 average, 15th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 454th in MLB.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Varland throws the slider 53.4% of the time against right-handers and 34.7% against left-handers.
148 pitches to right-handers, 121 to left-handers.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Varland releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 41 degrees above horizontal and 1.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
269 tracked release points, averaging 5.2 feet off the ground.
He lives on one side of the plate
Varland works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.1 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
269 located pitches in 2026.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Varland's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.7 mph, against 88.5 off his slider.
143 and 121 of them thrown.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Varland goes to the slider: 48.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 43.4% the rest of the time.
80 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.7 mph off the bat against Varland, 19th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 433rd in MLB.
He cannot find the zone often enough
Varland works off the plate, with only 41.6% of his pitches in the zone, 35th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 35th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 351st in MLB.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Varland throws a strike on the first pitch 63.5% of the time.
74 plate appearances started in 2026.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Varland's 4-seam fastball moves 9.2 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
143 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Varland releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
210 tracked pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Varland puts 57.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 46.2% when he is ahead.
63 located pitches behind, 93 ahead.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Varland lands 45.5% of his fastballs in the zone and only 38% of his breaking balls.
143 of his fastballs, 121 of his breaking balls.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Varland's 4-seam fastball spins at 2,315 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
143 thrown in 2026.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Varland's 4-seam fastball carries 18.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
143 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Varland's 4-seam fastball moves 9.2 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
143 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
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 .409 expected average against them, against .328 on his fastballs.
121 of his breaking balls thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Varland lands 45.5% of his fastballs in the zone and only 38% of his breaking balls.
143 of his fastballs, 121 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Too much of the contact against him is loud
54% of the contact Varland gives up is hit hard, 4th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 4th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 514th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Varland projects a .367 average, 15th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 454th in MLB.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 90.7 mph off the bat against Varland, 19th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 19th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 433rd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Varland works with 2 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball and Slider. The 4-seam fastball is 53.2% of everything he throws.
269 classified pitches in 2026.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Varland's 4-seam fastball averages 95.3 mph, and has touched 97.3.
143 thrown, 53.2% of his pitches.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Varland throws the slider 53.4% of the time against right-handers and 34.7% against left-handers.
148 pitches to right-handers, 121 to left-handers.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Varland's 4-seam fastball leaves the bat at 92.7 mph, against 88.5 off his slider.
143 and 121 of them thrown.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Varland's 4-seam fastball spins at 2,315 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
143 thrown in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Varland averages 91.8 mph across his arsenal, 77th percentile in the league.
269 pitches in 2026. 77th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 124th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Varland throws 38.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 43.8% with the bases empty.
116 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 153 with the bases empty.
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 Varland throws a fastball 61.9% of the time, against 50.5% when he is ahead.
63 pitches behind in the count, 93 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Varland goes to the slider: 48.8% of his two-strike pitches, against 43.4% the rest of the time.
80 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Varland throws a strike on the first pitch 63.5% of the time.
74 plate appearances started in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Varland puts 57.1% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 46.2% when he is ahead.
63 located pitches behind, 93 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Varland releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 41 degrees above horizontal and 1.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
269 tracked release points, averaging 5.2 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Varland releases the ball 6.6 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
210 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He lives on one side of the plate
Varland works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.1 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
269 located pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He cannot find the zone often enough
Varland works off the plate, with only 41.6% of his pitches in the zone, 35th percentile.
269 pitches in 2026. 35th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 351st in MLB.
White Sox
Career team 2024