Watch: Cardinals’ Jordan Hicks threw MLB’s fastest swinging strike perhaps ever
In case you haven’t heard, Jordan Hicks throws gas.
MLB’s Statcast reported on Thursday that the St. Louis Cardinals reliever’s swinging strike on Arizona Diamondbacks slugger AJ Pollock in Wednesday’s win was the fastest such pitch since pitch tracking began in 2008. Take a look at the offering, a sinker which clocked in at a whopping 104.4 mph:
.@Jhicks007 brought the again on the 4th of July.
The @Cardinals rookie got A.J. Pollock to wave at this 104.4 mph sinker — the fastest pitch for a swinging strike since pitch tracking began in 2008. pic.twitter.com/Rvh5NOlckH
— #Statcast (@statcast) July 5, 2018
That may just be a violation of federal obscenity law.
The rookie flamethrower enjoyed a hitless two-inning outing on the evening to earn his 11th hold of the season. He now has a 2.42 ERA with 38 strikeouts in 40 appearances.
Despite being only 21 years old, Hicks is already earning a reputation as perhaps the hardest thrower in baseball today. What makes it even more remarkable is that the pitch to Pollock was not even his fastest one this year.
