The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Topa releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 13 degrees above horizontal and 2.2 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
414 tracked release points, averaging 4.9 feet off the ground.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Topa throws a fastball 84% of the time, against 45.5% when he is ahead.
125 pitches behind in the count, 112 ahead.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Topa's sinker moves 18.2 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
168 thrown, averaging 93.5 mph.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his breaking balls: a .437 expected average against them, against .329 on his fastballs.
54 of his breaking balls thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Topa throws the sinker 51.6% of the time against right-handers and 19.1% against left-handers.
273 pitches to right-handers, 141 to left-handers.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Topa's sinker leaves the bat at 93.1 mph, against 85.7 off his cutter.
168 and 110 of them thrown.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Topa goes to the changeup: 21.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 10% the rest of the time.
114 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.0 mph off the bat against Topa, 15th percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 456th in MLB.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Topa releases the ball 5.8 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
347 tracked pitches in 2026.
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Topa lives in the strike zone: 44.8% of his pitches are in it, 71st percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 71st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 154th in MLB.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Topa lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.31 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
414 located pitches in 2026.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Topa lands 48.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 33.3% of his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs, 54 of his breaking balls.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Topa's sweeper spins at 2,631 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
82 thrown in 2026.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
45.8% of the contact Topa gives up is hit hard, 22nd percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 421st in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Topa puts 56.8% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 40.2% when he is ahead.
125 located pitches behind, 112 ahead.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Topa works with 4 pitches: Sinker, Cutter, Sweeper and Changeup. The sinker is 40.6% of everything he throws.
414 classified pitches in 2026.
He lives on one side of the plate
Topa works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 1.9 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
414 located pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.7 mph separates Topa's sinker from his sweeper, 93.5 against 81.8.
168 and 82 of them respectively.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Topa projects a .348 average, 29th percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 29th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 380th in MLB.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Topa throws a strike on the first pitch 62% of the time.
108 plate appearances started in 2026.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Topa releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 13 degrees above horizontal and 2.2 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
414 tracked release points, averaging 4.9 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Topa releases the ball 5.8 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
347 tracked pitches in 2026.
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 Topa throws a fastball 84% of the time, against 45.5% when he is ahead.
125 pitches behind in the count, 112 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Topa goes to the changeup: 21.1% of his two-strike pitches, against 10% the rest of the time.
114 two-strike pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Topa puts 56.8% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 40.2% when he is ahead.
125 located pitches behind, 112 ahead.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Topa throws a strike on the first pitch 62% of the time.
108 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Topa's sinker moves 18.2 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
168 thrown, averaging 93.5 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 .437 expected average against them, against .329 on his fastballs.
54 of his breaking balls thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Topa lands 48.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 33.3% of his breaking balls.
220 of his fastballs, 54 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Topa throws the sinker 51.6% of the time against right-handers and 19.1% against left-handers.
273 pitches to right-handers, 141 to left-handers.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Topa's sinker leaves the bat at 93.1 mph, against 85.7 off his cutter.
168 and 110 of them thrown.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Topa's sweeper spins at 2,631 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
82 thrown in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Topa works with 4 pitches: Sinker, Cutter, Sweeper and Changeup. The sinker is 40.6% of everything he throws.
414 classified pitches in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
11.7 mph separates Topa's sinker from his sweeper, 93.5 against 81.8.
168 and 82 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
When hitters connect off him, they hit it hard
Hitters average 91.0 mph off the bat against Topa, 15th percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 15th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 456th in MLB.
Too much of the contact against him is loud
45.8% of the contact Topa gives up is hit hard, 22nd percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 22nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 421st in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Topa projects a .348 average, 29th percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 29th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 380th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He fills the strike zone and makes hitters beat him
Topa lives in the strike zone: 44.8% of his pitches are in it, 71st percentile.
317 pitches in 2026. 71st percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 154th 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
Topa lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.31 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
414 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on one side of the plate
Topa works in on right-handers: his average pitch lands 1.9 inches to that side of the middle of the plate.
414 located pitches in 2026.
Yankees