Player stats

Knuckle curve: Average Vertical Movement with Gravity 2019

Average upward or downward bend from the pitch's initial flight direction, in inches. Includes gravity. Positive is upward; negative is downward. This is not the change in height from the pitcher's hand to the plate. Only measured pitches are included. Uses pitches recorded as knuckle curve.

Season

At least 100 pitches of this type with vertical movement measured including gravity 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. Movement is in inches. Positive sideways movement is to the pitcher's right when looking toward home plate. Positive vertical movement is upward relative to the initial flight direction. Removing gravity does not mean the pitch literally rises. Larger or smaller movement is not automatically better. Data through December 31, 2019. Data refreshed Sep 9, 2026, 2:19 PM UTC.

No. 1 / Knuckle curve: Average Vertical Movement with Gravity / 2019

Germán Márquez

COL

-43.3

Season leader

Knuckle curve: Average Vertical Movement with Gravity2019 season
#	Player	Team	KC vert count	Type coverage	KC vert in
1	G. MárquezGermán Márquez	COL	614	100.0%	-43.3
2	A. WoodAlex Wood	CIN	144	100.0%	-45.1
3	A. DeSclafaniAnthony DeSclafani	CIN	390	97.0%	-45.2
4	C. KimbrelCraig Kimbrel	CHC	126	96.2%	-45.7
5	R. RayRobbie Ray	AZ	494	99.8%	-46.5
6	M. LeakeMike Leake	AZ	235	99.8%	-47.5
7	C. AllenCody Allen	LAA	227	100.0%	-48.3
8	J. JeffressJeremy Jeffress	MIL	244	98.1%	-48.4
9	J. PaxtonJames Paxton	NYY	503	99.9%	-48.8
10	A. BradleyArchie Bradley	AZ	316	100.0%	-49.0
11	D. SmylyDrew Smyly	PHI	622	100.0%	-49.3
12	Z. GodleyZack Godley	TOR	652	100.0%	-49.6
13	M. BarnesMatt Barnes	BOS	656	100.0%	-50.0
14	J. KellyJoe Kelly	LAD	322	98.5%	-50.0
15	V. VelasquezVince Velasquez	PHI	259	100.0%	-50.3
16	S. BieberShane Bieber	CLE	660	96.7%	-50.6
17	W. DavisWade Davis	COL	158	100.0%	-51.2
18	T. DuffeyTyler Duffey	MIN	445	99.8%	-52.7
19	J. LópezJorge López	KC	662	100.0%	-53.0
20	H. BaileyHomer Bailey	OAK	249	98.9%	-53.5
21	C. StammenCraig Stammen	SD	152	99.9%	-54.2
22	Z. GallenZac Gallen	AZ	262	100.0%	-54.4
23	M. MinorMike Minor	TEX	383	100.0%	-54.5
24	A. NolaAaron Nola	PHI	1174	100.0%	-55.1
25	N. KinghamNick Kingham	TOR	198	100.0%	-55.2
26	D. PhelpsDavid Phelps	CHC	178	100.0%	-55.5
27	G. ColeGerrit Cole	HOU	519	99.9%	-55.6
28	T. CahillTrevor Cahill	LAA	375	96.2%	-56.2
29	J. FlahertyJack Flaherty	STL	383	100.0%	-56.5
30	I. KennedyIan Kennedy	KC	167	100.0%	-57.1
31	M. MelanconMark Melancon	ATL	331	100.0%	-57.7
32	B. PeacockBrad Peacock	HOU	104	99.9%	-58.0
33	B. WorkmanBrandon Workman	BOS	585	100.0%	-58.2
34	R. StriplingRoss Stripling	LAD	412	99.9%	-58.7
35	N. PivettaNick Pivetta	PHI	570	99.9%	-59.1
36	W. BuehlerWalker Buehler	LAD	340	99.8%	-59.2
37	D. PomeranzDrew Pomeranz	MIL	620	99.3%	-59.5
38	D. CeaseDylan Cease	CWS	253	100.0%	-63.3
39	T. BauerTrevor Bauer	CIN	726	100.0%	-63.6
40	R. WickRowan Wick	CHC	163	100.0%	-65.1
41	B. AndersonBrett Anderson	OAK	145	100.0%	-65.4
42	J. VargasJason Vargas	PHI	380	100.0%	-65.7

KC vert in: Average upward or downward bend from the pitch's initial flight direction, in inches. Includes gravity. Positive is upward; negative is downward. This is not the change in height from the pitcher's hand to the plate. Only measured pitches are included. Uses pitches recorded as knuckle curve.

Understanding Knuckle curve: Average Vertical Movement with Gravity

Formula: Sum of recorded vertical movement including gravity ÷ pitches with this measurement

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, 2:19 PM UTC.