One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Wittgren's changeup moves 84.5 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
56 thrown, averaging 85.0 mph.
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Wittgren's cutter leaves the bat at 91.8 mph, against 84.5 off his changeup.
63 and 56 of them thrown.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Wittgren releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 32 degrees above horizontal and 2.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
472 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Wittgren's 4-seam fastball carries 14.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
173 thrown, averaging 92.0 mph.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Wittgren lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.16 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
472 located pitches in 2023.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Wittgren throws the slider 50.8% of the time against right-handers and 26.2% against left-handers.
197 pitches to right-handers, 275 to left-handers.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his offspeed pitches: a .356 expected average against them, against .294 on his breaking balls.
56 of his offspeed pitches thrown.
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Wittgren throws a strike on the first pitch 65.6% of the time.
128 plate appearances started in 2023.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Wittgren averages 87.3 mph across his arsenal, 24th percentile in the league.
472 pitches in 2023. 24th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 587th in MLB.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Wittgren releases the ball 6.9 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
472 tracked pitches in 2023.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Wittgren goes to the 4-seam fastball: 41.5% of his two-strike pitches, against 34.5% the rest of the time.
147 two-strike pitches in 2023.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 34.4% of the contact Wittgren gives up is hit hard, 78th percentile.
472 pitches in 2023. 78th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 168th in MLB.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Wittgren's 4-seam fastball averages 92.0 mph, and has touched 94.2.
173 thrown, 36.7% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Wittgren works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Cutter and Changeup. The 4-seam fastball is 36.7% of everything he throws.
472 classified pitches in 2023.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Wittgren puts 46.2% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 43.6% of his pitches to left-handers.
197 pitches to right-handed hitters, 275 to left-handed hitters.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Wittgren projects a .312 average, 73rd percentile.
472 pitches in 2023. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 211th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Wittgren puts 54.7% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 41.7% when he is ahead.
117 located pitches behind, 151 ahead.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Wittgren lands 51.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 41.9% of his breaking balls.
244 of his fastballs, 172 of his breaking balls.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Wittgren throws a fastball 56.4% of the time, against 49% when he is ahead.
117 pitches behind in the count, 151 ahead.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Wittgren's slider spins at 2,386 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
172 thrown in 2023.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.0 mph separates Wittgren's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 92.0 against 83.0.
173 and 172 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Wittgren has thrown 8 sinkers this season, 1.7% of his pitches, at 91.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
472 classified pitches in 2023.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Wittgren's changeup moves 84.5 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
56 thrown, averaging 85.0 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Wittgren's 4-seam fastball carries 14.9 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
173 thrown, averaging 92.0 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
There is one pitch of his that keeps getting hit
Contact off Wittgren's cutter leaves the bat at 91.8 mph, against 84.5 off his changeup.
63 and 56 of them thrown.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Wittgren throws the slider 50.8% of the time against right-handers and 26.2% against left-handers.
197 pitches to right-handers, 275 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Wittgren's 4-seam fastball averages 92.0 mph, and has touched 94.2.
173 thrown, 36.7% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Wittgren works with 4 pitches: 4-Seam Fastball, Slider, Cutter and Changeup. The 4-seam fastball is 36.7% of everything he throws.
472 classified pitches in 2023.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Wittgren's slider spins at 2,386 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
172 thrown in 2023.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.0 mph separates Wittgren's 4-seam fastball from his slider, 92.0 against 83.0.
173 and 172 of them respectively.
One pitch exists only to make the hitter think
Wittgren has thrown 8 sinkers this season, 1.7% of his pitches, at 91.6 mph: a look rather than a weapon.
472 classified pitches in 2023.
Show more
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Wittgren releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 32 degrees above horizontal and 2.1 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
472 tracked release points, averaging 5.6 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Wittgren releases the ball 6.9 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
472 tracked pitches in 2023.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Wittgren lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.16 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
472 located pitches in 2023.
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 offspeed pitches: a .356 expected average against them, against .294 on his breaking balls.
56 of his offspeed pitches thrown.
He throws strikes to one type of hitter and not the other
Wittgren lands 51.6% of his fastballs in the zone and only 41.9% of his breaking balls.
244 of his fastballs, 172 of his breaking balls.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets ahead early and pitches from in front all night
Wittgren throws a strike on the first pitch 65.6% of the time.
128 plate appearances started in 2023.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Wittgren goes to the 4-seam fastball: 41.5% of his two-strike pitches, against 34.5% the rest of the time.
147 two-strike pitches in 2023.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Wittgren puts 54.7% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 41.7% when he is ahead.
117 located pitches behind, 151 ahead.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Wittgren throws a fastball 56.4% of the time, against 49% when he is ahead.
117 pitches behind in the count, 151 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Wittgren averages 87.3 mph across his arsenal, 24th percentile in the league.
472 pitches in 2023. 24th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 587th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 34.4% of the contact Wittgren gives up is hit hard, 78th percentile.
472 pitches in 2023. 78th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 168th in MLB.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Wittgren projects a .312 average, 73rd percentile.
472 pitches in 2023. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2023, 211th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Wittgren puts 46.2% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 43.6% of his pitches to left-handers.
197 pitches to right-handed hitters, 275 to left-handed hitters.
Mariners
Career team 2019–2021