Player stats

Knuckle curve: Average Spin 2019

How fast the ball spins, measured in turns per minute. Only measured pitches are included. More spin is not always better. Uses pitches recorded as knuckle curve.

Season

At least 100 pitches of this type with a spin measurement in this season. Recorded pitch types. Usage divides by all delivered pitches, including unknown types. Speed is in mph, spin in rpm and extension in feet. Averages use measured pitches only. Whiffs divide misses by swings. Data through December 31, 2019. Data refreshed Sep 9, 2026, 10:19 AM UTC.

No. 1 / Knuckle curve: Average Spin / 2019

Joe Kelly

LAD

3103

Season leader

Knuckle curve: Average Spin2019 season
#	Player	Team	KC spin count	Type coverage	KC rpm
1	J. KellyJoe Kelly	LAD	322	98.5%	3103
2	T. CahillTrevor Cahill	LAA	375	96.2%	2950
3	W. BuehlerWalker Buehler	LAD	340	99.8%	2915
4	G. ColeGerrit Cole	HOU	518	99.9%	2901
5	N. PivettaNick Pivetta	PHI	570	99.9%	2861
6	M. MelanconMark Melancon	ATL	331	100.0%	2702
7	G. MárquezGermán Márquez	COL	604	100.0%	2693
8	I. KennedyIan Kennedy	KC	167	100.0%	2687
9	R. StriplingRoss Stripling	LAD	412	99.9%	2650
10	D. PhelpsDavid Phelps	CHC	178	100.0%	2648
11	D. CeaseDylan Cease	CWS	253	100.0%	2622
12	B. WorkmanBrandon Workman	BOS	585	100.0%	2608
13	B. PeacockBrad Peacock	HOU	104	99.9%	2599
14	R. WickRowan Wick	CHC	163	100.0%	2582
15	W. DavisWade Davis	COL	158	100.0%	2582
16	A. NolaAaron Nola	PHI	1174	100.0%	2574
17	M. LeakeMike Leake	AZ	216	99.8%	2572
18	T. BauerTrevor Bauer	CIN	726	100.0%	2548
19	M. MinorMike Minor	TEX	382	100.0%	2534
20	C. AllenCody Allen	LAA	227	100.0%	2534
21	C. KimbrelCraig Kimbrel	CHC	126	96.2%	2533
22	T. DuffeyTyler Duffey	MIN	445	99.8%	2521
23	J. FlahertyJack Flaherty	STL	383	100.0%	2501
24	V. VelasquezVince Velasquez	PHI	254	100.0%	2475
25	J. LópezJorge López	KC	661	100.0%	2450
26	J. VargasJason Vargas	PHI	380	100.0%	2433
27	Z. GallenZac Gallen	AZ	256	100.0%	2404
28	B. AndersonBrett Anderson	OAK	145	100.0%	2393
29	J. JeffressJeremy Jeffress	MIL	237	98.1%	2385
30	N. KinghamNick Kingham	TOR	198	100.0%	2373
31	C. StammenCraig Stammen	SD	152	99.9%	2363
32	S. BieberShane Bieber	CLE	660	96.7%	2303
33	D. PomeranzDrew Pomeranz	MIL	620	99.3%	2283
34	M. BarnesMatt Barnes	BOS	655	100.0%	2274
35	A. WoodAlex Wood	CIN	144	100.0%	2161
36	Z. GodleyZack Godley	TOR	624	100.0%	2123
37	A. DeSclafaniAnthony DeSclafani	CIN	357	97.0%	2048
38	R. RayRobbie Ray	AZ	487	99.8%	2047
39	J. PaxtonJames Paxton	NYY	502	99.9%	2013
40	A. BradleyArchie Bradley	AZ	315	100.0%	1978
41	D. SmylyDrew Smyly	PHI	622	100.0%	1950
42	H. BaileyHomer Bailey	OAK	249	98.9%	1925

KC rpm: How fast the ball spins, measured in turns per minute. Only measured pitches are included. More spin is not always better. Uses pitches recorded as knuckle curve.

Understanding Knuckle curve: Average Spin

How fast the ball spins, measured in turns per minute. Only measured pitches are included. More spin is not always better. Uses pitches recorded as knuckle curve.

Formula: Sum of recorded spin rates ÷ pitches with spin measurements

Read rates alongside playing time. A small sample can produce an extreme result, and a missing value is different from zero.

Season rankings use regular-season records. A player has one combined row across teams; the team label identifies the associated team, not a separate team stint.

Source: MLB statistics and MLBDB derived measures. Formulas describe the measure above. Data refreshed Sep 9, 2026, 10:19 AM UTC.