Jazz Chisholm Jr. Says Matt Waldron's Knuckleball Is the Best Pitch in Baseball

Chisholm had high praise for Waldron's signature pitch.

Jun 8, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres starting pitcher Matt Waldron (61) pitches during the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-USA TODAY Sports at Petco Park. / Denis Poroy-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Waldron's knuckleball is having a moment.

The San Diego Padres right-handed pitcher has reintroduced everyone's favorite pitch to Major League Baseball and people are taking notice. Even Patrick Mahomes has referenced it. This week, Miami Marlins center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. called Waldron's knuckler the best pitch he has ever seen in baseball.

"I just faced this man named Waldron—and he threw a knuckleball," Chisholm said. " ... Bro, deadly. That's probably the best pitch I've seen in baseball. It's going everywhere. It go that way, that way, that way.

"We were losing, and I came back to the dugout and said, 'Bro, I can't be mad. The thing is going everywhere. It was a good pitch.'"

Is Matt Waldron's knuckleball the nastiest pitch in baseball?

Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Nick Gordon think so. pic.twitter.com/KLaxlbJIcL

— MLB (@MLB) June 18, 2024

That's high praise when an All-Star calls your pitch "deadly" and claims it's the best pitch he has ever seen.

Waldron has been a big surprise this season. The 27-year-old is in his first full season as a big leaguer and is holding his own. In 14 starts he's currently 4–6 with a 3.66 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP and 70 strikeouts against 23 walks in 76.1 innings.

Waldron is MLB's first knuckleballer since 2021, so it has been a while since opponents have had to deal with the pitch. And, unlike a lot of previous knuckleballers, Waldron doesn't exclusively throw the pitch. In fact, according to StatCast he throws the knuckler 38.1% of the time, with a low-90s four-seam fastball coming in 22.1%, and his sweeper 19.2% of the time.

That process allows him to get some ridiculous swings like in the following video.

Matt Waldron, 76mph Knuckleball and 91mph Fastball, Overlay. pic.twitter.com/kShYS9dbkj

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 9, 2024

It's worth noting, when Chisholm faced Waldron on May 28, the Marlins lost 4–0. Waldron went seven shutout innings, allowing six hits and striking out eight. Chisholm went 0-for-3. The pitches he swung and missed for both strikeouts? Both knuckleballs.

Yeah, he's right, it's pretty nasty.