Exploring the Arsenal will run prior to each game, providing you with a brief scouting report on the starting pitcher expected to oppose the Pirates. The chart below shows the horizontal and vertical movement of every pitch thrown by that particular pitcher in 2012. This chart is from the catcher’s point of view. For a general guide to pitch types for a right-handed pitcher, please check out this image created by Sons of Sam Horn. Graphs are courtesy of Brooks Baseball and The Hardball Times , unless otherwise specified.
| Pitch Types | ||
|---|---|---|
| FA: Four-Seam Fastball | FT: Two-Seam Fastball | FC: Cutter |
| CU: Curveball | SL: Slider | CH: Changeup |
| FS: Splitter | SI: Sinker |
Thursday, 7:05 PM – Bud Norris
Norris has good life on his fastball, throwing it at 91-93 MPH and occasionally touching 95. His velocity has been down this season, averaging about one MPH slower than in 2011. He makes heavy use of an 83-86 MPH slider and an 83-86 MPH changeup. The slider is his big swing-and-miss pitch, with a whiff rate of about 40% in 2012. Norris’ four-seam fastball has slowly become more hittable over the years, and has not missed many bats this season. However, his two-seamer and slider have both been difficult to put in play, keeping his overall whiff rate well above average. He generally goes with the fastball/slider combo against righties and mixes in the two-seamer and changeup more frequently against left-handed batters. Overall, he has cut down on his use of the change a bit this year.
