GIFS: Roberto Osuna Baffles the A’s with His Slider

Roberto Osuna has a weapon … and he isn’t afraid to use it.

At least, he isn’t afraid to use this weapon with more frequency than he has in the past. It’s Osuna’s deadly slider, which was in full effect against the Oakland A’s last night.

The pitch that’s garnered a lot of attention as of late has been Osuna’s new cutter, but his slider has been un-hittable this season. FanGraphs has Osuna’s slider ranked as the best weapon in his arsenal. Overall, opponents are swinging at 43.9% of his pitches outside the strike zone.


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The Athletics had no answer for Osuna’s slider as he struck out the side on 13 pitches – carving up Rajai Davis, Marcus Semien and Ryon Healy. Blue Jays fans are all too familiar with this swing by Rajai Davis, but watch the bottom completely fall out of Osuna’s slider as it crosses the plate.

Two batters later, Healy found himself in a similar predicament, swinging at a pitch well below the strike zone. The best part of all? Healy’s “aww shucks” reaction after he missed the ball completely.

And that my friends, is how you make an opponent look completely silly. Filthy, nasty, devastating … whichever superlative you prefer, Osuna’s slider is all of the above.

Just for fun, here’s a look at all the swings and misses Roberto Osuna has induced on his slider this season (it’s 63 total for those who are counting).

Baseball Savant

If you’re a right-handed hitter facing Robert Osuna when he unleashes this pitch, good luck.
 

Ian Hunter

Ian has been writing about the Toronto Blue Jays since 2007. He enjoyed the tail-end of the Roy Halladay era and vividly remembers the Alex Rodriguez "mine" incident. He'll also retell the story of Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS to his kids for the next 20 years.