When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Rondon throws a fastball 77.1% of the time, against 45.9% when he is ahead.
105 pitches behind in the count, 122 ahead.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Rondon's sinker moves 112.0 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
41 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Rondon averages 91.6 mph across his arsenal, 86th percentile in the league.
390 pitches in 2020. 86th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 90th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Rondon's 4-seam fastball averages 95.7 mph, and has touched 98.4.
191 thrown, 49% of his pitches.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Rondon's 4-seam fastball carries 15.3 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
191 thrown, averaging 95.7 mph.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Rondon throws the slider 46.4% of the time against right-handers and 24.1% against left-handers.
224 pitches to right-handers, 166 to left-handers.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.5 mph off the bat against Rondon, 11th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 584th in MLB.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Rondon 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.
390 located pitches in 2020.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Rondon lands 52.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 36.8% of his breaking balls.
232 of his fastballs, 144 of his breaking balls.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Rondon works with 3 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 49% of everything he throws.
390 classified pitches in 2020.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
15.4% of Rondon's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
60 of 390 located pitches.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Rondon puts 55.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.7% when he is ahead.
105 located pitches behind, 122 ahead.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Rondon puts 44.2% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 47.6% of his pitches to left-handers.
224 pitches to right-handed hitters, 166 to left-handed hitters.
His ball is straighter than it should be
Rondon's stuff spins at 2,117 rpm, 25th percentile in the league.
390 pitches in 2020. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 496th in MLB.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Rondon goes to the 4-seam fastball: 53.7% of his two-strike pitches, against 46.8% the rest of the time.
121 two-strike pitches in 2020.
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Rondon lives in the strike zone: 45.6% of his pitches are in it, 67th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 67th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 220th in MLB.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Rondon releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 44 degrees above horizontal and 1.3 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
390 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
43.5% of the contact Rondon gives up is hit hard, 25th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 491st in MLB.
He lives on one side of the plate
Rondon works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.4 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
390 located pitches in 2020.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Rondon's sinker leaves the bat at 92.4 mph, against 89.5 off his slider.
41 and 144 of them thrown.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Rondon projects a .377 average, 27th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 27th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 481st in MLB.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Rondon throws a strike on the first pitch 57.9% of the time.
95 plate appearances started in 2020.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.3 mph separates Rondon's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 95.7 against 85.4.
191 and 144 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Rondon has thrown 14 changeups this season, 3.6% of his pitches, at 88.3 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
390 classified pitches in 2020.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Rondon's slider spins at 2,289 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
144 thrown in 2020.
Show more
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 Rondon throws a fastball 77.1% of the time, against 45.9% when he is ahead.
105 pitches behind in the count, 122 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Rondon puts 55.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 37.7% when he is ahead.
105 located pitches behind, 122 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Rondon goes to the 4-seam fastball: 53.7% of his two-strike pitches, against 46.8% the rest of the time.
121 two-strike pitches in 2020.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Rondon throws a strike on the first pitch 57.9% of the time.
95 plate appearances started in 2020.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Rondon's sinker moves 112.0 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
41 thrown, averaging 95.3 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Rondon's 4-seam fastball carries 15.3 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
191 thrown, averaging 95.7 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws about as hard as anybody in the league
Rondon averages 91.6 mph across his arsenal, 86th percentile in the league.
390 pitches in 2020. 86th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 90th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Rondon's 4-seam fastball averages 95.7 mph, and has touched 98.4.
191 thrown, 49% of his pitches.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Rondon throws the slider 46.4% of the time against right-handers and 24.1% against left-handers.
224 pitches to right-handers, 166 to left-handers.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Rondon works with 3 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider and Sinker. The 4-seam fastball is 49% of everything he throws.
390 classified pitches in 2020.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Rondon's sinker leaves the bat at 92.4 mph, against 89.5 off his slider.
41 and 144 of them thrown.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
10.3 mph separates Rondon's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 95.7 against 85.4.
191 and 144 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Rondon has thrown 14 changeups this season, 3.6% of his pitches, at 88.3 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
390 classified pitches in 2020.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Rondon's slider spins at 2,289 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
144 thrown in 2020.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.5 mph off the bat against Rondon, 11th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 11th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 584th in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
43.5% of the contact Rondon gives up is hit hard, 25th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 491st in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Rondon projects a .377 average, 27th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 27th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 481st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Rondon 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.
390 located pitches in 2020.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
15.4% of Rondon's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
60 of 390 located pitches.
He lives on one side of the plate
Rondon works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 2.4 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
390 located pitches in 2020.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Rondon lands 52.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 36.8% of his breaking balls.
232 of his fastballs, 144 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Rondon puts 44.2% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 47.6% of his pitches to left-handers.
224 pitches to right-handed hitters, 166 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball is straighter than it should be
Rondon's stuff spins at 2,117 rpm, 25th percentile in the league.
390 pitches in 2020. 25th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 496th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Rondon lives in the strike zone: 45.6% of his pitches are in it, 67th percentile.
390 pitches in 2020. 67th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2020, 220th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Rondon releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 44 degrees above horizontal and 1.3 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
390 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
Cubs
Career team 2013–2017