Today’s three pack aims to introduce you to a reliever new to the Pittsburgh Pirates’ big league club in Geoff Hartlieb.
70-Grade
The 6’6” Hartlieb’s fastball jumps out at you.
It was graded as a 70 on the 20-80 scale by MLB Pipeline, though that grade was not arrived at by traditional metrics alone. Sure, he has the requisite mid-to-high 90s velocity relievers crave, but his arm slot coupled with his delivery gives it more life than it should.
The pitch simply comes up on hitters in a surprising fashion, giving them a bit less time to react.