This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Lovelady goes to the sweeper: 59.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 37.7% the rest of the time.
171 two-strike pitches in 2026.
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Lovelady releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.4 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
640 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Lovelady throws the sinker 44.1% of the time against left-handers and 17.3% against right-handers.
359 pitches to right-handers, 281 to left-handers.
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Lovelady averages 86.8 mph across his arsenal, 16th percentile in the league.
311 pitches in 2026. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 451st in MLB.
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Lovelady's sinker moves 13.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
186 thrown, averaging 91.1 mph.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Lovelady's sinker averages 91.1 mph, and has touched 93.4.
186 thrown, 29.1% of his pitches.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Lovelady releases the ball 7.3 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
575 tracked pitches in 2026.
One type of hitter does all the damage against him
Hitters do their damage on his fastballs: a .385 expected average against them, against .321 on his breaking balls.
156 of his fastballs thrown.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Lovelady throws a fastball 59.3% of the time, against 42.9% when he is ahead.
182 pitches behind in the count, 189 ahead.
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Lovelady throws 40.9% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 46.5% with the bases empty.
154 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 157 with the bases empty.
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Lovelady lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.22 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
640 located pitches in 2026.
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Lovelady is weak: 86.0 mph off the bat on average, 82nd percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 82nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 99th in MLB.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Lovelady's 4-seam fastball carries 11.8 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
142 thrown, averaging 91.3 mph.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 32% of the contact Lovelady gives up is hit hard, 82nd percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 82nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 98th in MLB.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Lovelady works with 4 pitches: Sweeper, Sinker, 4-Seam Fastball and Slider. The sweeper is 43.6% of everything he throws.
640 classified pitches in 2026.
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Lovelady's stuff spins at 2,381 rpm, 73rd percentile in the league.
311 pitches in 2026. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 145th in MLB.
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Lovelady puts 44.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 42.3% of his pitches to left-handers.
188 pitches to right-handed hitters, 123 to left-handed hitters.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Lovelady's sweeper spins at 2,483 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
279 thrown in 2026.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Lovelady projects a .349 average, 28th percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 28th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 385th in MLB.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Lovelady puts 52.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 44.4% when he is ahead.
182 located pitches behind, 189 ahead.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.5 mph separates Lovelady's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.3 against 81.8.
142 and 279 of them respectively.
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The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
This is the pitch he goes to when he needs the out
With two strikes Lovelady goes to the sweeper: 59.6% of his two-strike pitches, against 37.7% the rest of the time.
171 two-strike pitches in 2026.
When he falls behind, hitters know exactly what is coming
Behind in the count Lovelady throws a fastball 59.3% of the time, against 42.9% when he is ahead.
182 pitches behind in the count, 189 ahead.
How much of the zone he uses depends on the count
Lovelady puts 52.2% of his pitches in the zone when he is behind and 44.4% when he is ahead.
182 located pitches behind, 189 ahead.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
The angle he throws from is unusual, and hitters notice
Lovelady releases the ball from a sidearm slot, about 24 degrees above horizontal and 2.4 feet to the first-base side of the rubber.
640 tracked release points, averaging 5.3 feet off the ground.
He gets so far down the mound the ball arrives early
Lovelady releases the ball 7.3 feet down the mound, so the ball arrives sooner than the radar gun suggests.
575 tracked pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He saves one pitch for one side of the plate
Lovelady throws the sinker 44.1% of the time against left-handers and 17.3% against right-handers.
359 pitches to right-handers, 281 to left-handers.
His fastball is the pitch everything else is built on
Lovelady's sinker averages 91.1 mph, and has touched 93.4.
186 thrown, 29.1% of his pitches.
His pitches move in ways that fit together
Lovelady works with 4 pitches: Sweeper, Sinker, 4-Seam Fastball and Slider. The sweeper is 43.6% of everything he throws.
640 classified pitches in 2026.
One pitch of his spins more than almost anyone's
Lovelady's sweeper spins at 2,483 rpm, the highest in his arsenal.
279 thrown in 2026.
The gap between his pitches is what makes them work
9.5 mph separates Lovelady's 4-seam fastball from his sweeper, 91.3 against 81.8.
142 and 279 of them respectively.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He gets by without much velocity, and it costs him
Lovelady averages 86.8 mph across his arsenal, 16th percentile in the league.
311 pitches in 2026. 16th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 451st in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
One pitch of his runs sideways more than almost anyone's
Lovelady's sinker moves 13.7 inches toward the first-base side, the biggest horizontal move in his arsenal.
186 thrown, averaging 91.1 mph.
One pitch of his moves in a way hitters rarely see
Lovelady's 4-seam fastball carries 11.8 inches of ride against a spinless ball, the biggest vertical move in his arsenal.
142 thrown, averaging 91.3 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 fastballs: a .385 expected average against them, against .321 on his breaking balls.
156 of his fastballs thrown.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches around the zone once runners are on
Lovelady throws 40.9% of his pitches in the zone with a runner in scoring position and 46.5% with the bases empty.
154 pitches with a runner in scoring position, 157 with the bases empty.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
He works one part of the zone far more than the rest
Lovelady lives at the bottom of the zone: his average pitch crosses at 2.22 feet, against a zone that runs 1.5 to 3.5.
640 located pitches in 2026.
The numbers behind these live in Spray Chart.
Take me there
Hitters cannot square him up, the contact is weak
Contact against Lovelady is weak: 86.0 mph off the bat on average, 82nd percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 82nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 99th in MLB.
Almost nothing hit off him is hit well
Only 32% of the contact Lovelady gives up is hit hard, 82nd percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 82nd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 98th in MLB.
The contact he allows is the kind that finds grass
The quality of contact against Lovelady projects a .349 average, 28th percentile.
311 pitches in 2026. 28th percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 385th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Pitch Data.
Take me there
His ball moves more than the hitter expects it to
Lovelady's stuff spins at 2,381 rpm, 73rd percentile in the league.
311 pitches in 2026. 73rd percentile among qualified pitchers in 2026, 145th in MLB.
The numbers behind these live in Matchups.
Take me there
He pitches differently depending on which hand is up
Lovelady puts 44.7% of his pitches to right-handers in the zone and 42.3% of his pitches to left-handers.
188 pitches to right-handed hitters, 123 to left-handed hitters.
Nationals