One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .358 expected average against them, against .246 on his breaking balls.
210 of his fastballs thrown.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Blackburn throws a fastball 80% of the time, against 54.5% when he is ahead.
95 pitches behind in the count, 77 ahead.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Blackburn throws the sinker 50% of the time against right-handers and 16.4% against left-handers.
158 pitches to right-handers, 140 to left-handers.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Blackburn's sinker moves 13.3 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
102 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Blackburn's cutter averages 91.4 mph, and has touched 93.8.
104 thrown, 34.9% of his pitches.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Blackburn puts 45.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 40.7% of his pitches to left-handers.
158 pitches to right-handed hitters, 140 to left-handed hitters.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Blackburn releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 39 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
293 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Blackburn goes to the sweeper: 12% of his two-strike pitches, against 3.6% the rest of the time.
75 two-strike pitches in 2026.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Blackburn lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.28 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
293 located pitches in 2026.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Blackburn works with 5 pitches: Cutter, Sinker, Curveball and Changeup, and a little else. The cutter is 34.9% of everything he throws.
298 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Blackburn's sinker carries 11.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
102 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Blackburn throws 45.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 42.4% with the bases empty.
83 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 215 with the bases empty.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.1% of Blackburn's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
50 of 293 located pitches.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Blackburn puts 56.4% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 43.4% when he is ahead.
94 located pitches behind, 76 ahead.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Blackburn's cutter spins at 2,461 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
104 thrown in 2026.
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Blackburn projects a .309 average, 66th percentile.
298 pitches in 2026. 66th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 183rd in MLB.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Blackburn throws a strike on the first pitch 57% of the time.
79 plate appearances started in 2026.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Blackburn releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
192 tracked pitches in 2026.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Blackburn's stuff spins at 2,324 rpm, 62nd percentile in the league.
298 pitches in 2026. 62nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 206th in MLB.
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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 fastballs: a .358 expected average against them, against .246 on his breaking balls.
210 of his fastballs thrown.
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 Blackburn throws a fastball 80% of the time, against 54.5% when he is ahead.
95 pitches behind in the count, 77 ahead.
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Blackburn goes to the sweeper: 12% of his two-strike pitches, against 3.6% the rest of the time.
75 two-strike pitches in 2026.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Blackburn puts 56.4% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 43.4% when he is ahead.
94 located pitches behind, 76 ahead.
He falls behind hitters far too often
Blackburn throws a strike on the first pitch 57% of the time.
79 plate appearances started in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Blackburn throws the sinker 50% of the time against right-handers and 16.4% against left-handers.
158 pitches to right-handers, 140 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Blackburn's cutter averages 91.4 mph, and has touched 93.8.
104 thrown, 34.9% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Blackburn works with 5 pitches: Cutter, Sinker, Curveball and Changeup, and a little else. The cutter is 34.9% of everything he throws.
298 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Blackburn's cutter spins at 2,461 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
104 thrown in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Blackburn's sinker moves 13.3 inches toward the third-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
102 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Blackburn's sinker carries 11.1 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
102 thrown, averaging 94.1 mph.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Blackburn puts 45.8% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 40.7% of his pitches to left-handers.
158 pitches to right-handed hitters, 140 to left-handed hitters.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Blackburn releases the ball from a low three-quarters slot, about 39 degrees above horizontal and 2.0 feet to the third-base side of the rubber.
293 tracked release points, averaging 5.9 feet off the ground.
He releases the ball about where everyone else does
Blackburn releases the ball 6.2 feet down the mound, a shorter stride than most.
192 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Blackburn lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.28 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
293 located pitches in 2026.
He lives on the edges rather than over the middle
17.1% of Blackburn's pitches land in the middle third of the zone, well below what most pitchers give away.
50 of 293 located pitches.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Blackburn throws 45.8% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 42.4% with the bases empty.
83 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 215 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
The contact he allows should not turn into many hits
The quality of contact against Blackburn projects a .309 average, 66th percentile.
298 pitches in 2026. 66th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 183rd in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Blackburn's stuff spins at 2,324 rpm, 62nd percentile in the league.
298 pitches in 2026. 62nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 206th in MLB.
Yankees