Unhittable: How Analytics and Tech Are Revolutionising Baseball Pitching
In a 1940 publicity stunt, Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller famously raced a motorcycle to prove his fastball was faster. Today, Feller's once-remarkable speed has become commonplace, with major league pitchers routinely exceeding triple digits on radar guns. The secret behind this modern arms race lies not in natural talent alone, but in the groundbreaking advances of pitching analytics, often developed by individuals with no traditional baseball background.
The Rise of the PitchingNinja
This transformation is the central narrative of Unhittable, a new book by Rob Friedman, better known online as PitchingNinja. The book's subtitle encapsulates its theme: How Technology, Mavericks and Innovators Engineered Baseball's New Era of Pitching Dominance. Friedman tracks this brave new world through methods like heat maps, slow-motion cameras, and artificial intelligence, introducing readers to previously unheard-of concepts such as Seam-Shifted Wake.
"It's really changed through the years," Friedman explains. "Baseball used to focus on players who were farm-strong but never lifted weights, with the belief that you couldn't teach someone to throw hard—you were either born with it or you weren't. Today, technology brings out the best in everybody."
The New Generation of Pitchers
Among the pitchers leveraging this wealth of analytics is last year's National League Cy Young winner, Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Friedman is equally enthusiastic about another young star, Nolan McLean of the New York Mets, whom he describes as one of the most talented young pitchers in baseball.
"My favourite guy to watch is lesser-known," Friedman says of McLean. "His stuff is absolutely nasty. I was happy that in the World Baseball Classic, the world got to see the movement of his pitches. He's extraordinary, off-the-charts. Obviously, I follow and root for Paul Skenes, and Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers is another standout. But Nolan McLean isn't even on the radar for some in New York."
Are Pitchers Too Dominant?
This surge in pitching prowess raises a critical question: are we witnessing a return to 1968, when pitchers like Denny McLain dominated hitters to such an extent that batting averages plummeted? Friedman, despite his nickname PitchingNinja, offers a nuanced perspective.
"I've never said the game is too pitcher-friendly," he clarifies. "I love nasty pitching. Baseball is the only sport where the player with the ball is technically on defence, but the pitcher is really on offence. Hitters react to what pitchers do. In the modern game, I do think pitchers have a big advantage. The question is, do fans want it this way?"
The Physical Toll and Injury Concerns
The legendary Bob Gibson, known for his triple-digit speeds, once described the strain of throwing 100 mph: "Everything hurts. Even your ass hurts. I see pictures of my face and say, 'Holy shit,' but that's the strain you feel when you throw." With pitcher injuries on the rise, Friedman acknowledges the risks but points to a broader context.
"There's no agreement on why injuries happen," he notes. "It's like a race car: you drive fast enough, you lose control. At some point, things break. Even Paul Skenes has backed off some, lowering his velocity from 102 mph to 99 mph—enough to get hitters out."
Instead of solely focusing on velocity, Friedman emphasises that pitchers can diversify their arsenal through practices like tunneling, where multiple pitches begin similarly before breaking in different directions.
Mavericks and Innovators
Friedman's own journey exemplifies how outsiders can impact the sport. A former lawyer, he adopted the PitchingNinja persona on social media to share pitching videos and lessons. His influence grew to the point where he interrupted dinner with his wife to respond to a direct message from five-time All-Star Yu Darvish.
Similarly, Daren Willman, creator of the Baseball Savant website, began sharing pitching data while working in software at a district attorney's office in Texas. He eventually turned his passion into a full-time role with MLB and the Texas Rangers, including during their World Series championship season.
"You don't have to formally be in baseball or be a great player to have an impact on the sport," Friedman observes.
The Legacy of Nolan Ryan and Trevor Bauer
The book highlights Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan as a pioneer who bucked tradition by training with weights, retiring with the all-time major-league strikeout record. "I don't think he gets enough credit," Friedman says. "In his day, pitchers thought weightlifting was a bad idea. He was one of the first to embrace it, lifting throughout the season, which was unique."
Friedman also credits Trevor Bauer with popularising analytics-driven pitching, despite Bauer's off-field controversies. "He was not naturally talented," Friedman explains. "He engineered himself into a baseball player using available technology, like long toss and weighted balls. He's a good case study, a bridge to what we see today."
Bridging Analytics and Tradition
Reflecting on the ongoing debate between analytics and traditional approaches, Friedman advocates for balance. "Players with no formal engineering background might ask, 'Why are these weenies who can't even pitch trying to tell me how to play?' It goes both ways. Sometimes really smart people criticise players for not being open-minded. I don't know if either side is right. There needs to be a bridge to talk to everyone. All analytics are is more information."
As technology continues to evolve, from Edgertronic slow-motion cameras to affordable radar guns, the future of pitching promises even greater innovation. Whether this leads to an era of unhittable dominance or a renewed equilibrium between pitchers and hitters remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the game of baseball has been forever transformed by the mavericks and innovators of the analytics age.
