Yankees hitters versus Toronto Blue Jays starting pitching

Marco Estrada

Fourth in the rotation is Marco Estrada. Throwing, for the most part only two pitches, a fastball and a changeup; Estrada at times mixes in a curveball and cut fastball.

The ten-year MLB veteran is coming off an unusually weak season in which he donned an ERA near five. Estrada posted raised batting averages against each of his pitches.

Both his fastball and his changeup resulted in mid .200 batting averages and double-digit home run totals. Both pitches are also pitches in which the Yankees hit particularly well off.

Estrada’s curveball and cutter, both experienced even worse outcomes — with over .300 batting averages, and minimal movement.

Joe Biagini

The last of the rotation, soon to be entering his third year in baseball is Joe Biagini, who experienced rough outings his sophomore year.

After pitching very well out of the bullpen in his rookie year, Biagini saw a higher ERA and lower speeds on his curveball as a starter in 2017.

With Biagini, I’ll start with where the most significant change occurred between 2016 and 2017; his curveball. Dropping almost two mph may not seem like a lot, but when coming after a mid-90s fastball, those two extra mph might have fooled the batter a bit more.