Twins' Jhoan Duran throws hardest pitches of 2023 MLB season
Minnesota Twins flame-throwing closer Jhoan Duran became the eighth pitcher in MLB history to have a pitch clocked at 104+ mph, but he did it with three times in Minnesota's 7-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday.
Facing Wilmer Flores, Duran lit up the radar gun with a 103.3 mph fastball and then followed with fastballs clocked at 104.4 mph and 104.6 mph. He later ended the game by striking out Casey Schmitt with a 104.0 mph fastball.
Those three heaters now rank 1-2-3 as the fastest pitches in Major League Baseball this season, topping the previous high of 103.8 set by a pair of star relievers, Jordan Hicks of the Cardinals and Yankees lefty Aroldis Chapman.
Duran's average fastball this season has rocketed from his hand to the catcher's mitt at 101.5 mph, the fastest in the big leagues, according to Baseball Savant. Hicks is second in the majors with an average heater of 100.8 mph. No other pitcher is averaging 100+ mph.
His splitter, which he calls a "splinker" because it's a mix of a sinker and a splitter, comes in at an average of 98.6 mph. That blows away the second-fastest average splitter speed of 93.7 mph by Tampa Bay's Pete Fairbanks.
Duran's average curveball speed is 88.2 mph, which is No. 2 in the majors behind White Sox right-hander Joe Kelly (88.4 mph).
To recap, Duran throws the...
- Hardest fastballs
- Hardest splitters
- Second-hardest curveballs in the majors
Duran said in January, while at TwinsFest in Minneapolis, that he believes he can hit 105 mph on the radar gun this season.
