Ben Joyce has emerged as one of the most intriguing relievers in baseball this season, not just because of his raw speed but because of a daring new weapon he has added to his arsenal.
A Velocity‑Driven Evolution
The pitch, which blends the sinking action of a traditional slider with the deceptive drop of a splitter, sits between his two fastballs, creating a stark contrast that keeps hitters off balance.
At 105.5 mph, one of his fastballs ranks among the hardest throws recorded in the Statcast era, and the splinker’s reduced spin generates less lift and more horizontal drift, making it behave like a sinker with a twist.
Joyce says the idea came from late‑night conversations in the clubhouse, where he experimented with grip variations until the hybrid felt natural, a process that accelerated after his shoulder surgery earlier in the year.
Future Prospects
With a fastball that can eclipse 105 mph and a splinker that confounds hitters, analysts predict that Joyce could soon join the conversation for the league’s most dominant late‑inning reliever, provided he can fine‑tune his control.