Rival All-Star Says Padres Pitcher Has 'Best Pitch I've Ever Seen in Baseball'

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jun 21, 2024

Denis Poroy-USA TODAY Sports

The Philadelphia Phillies had 13 hits on Monday and 18 on Tuesday.

On Wednesday against Matt Waldron and the San Diego Padres, they had five.

Waldron and his knuckleball have been causing fits all season. Against the Phillies, he got six misses, seven fouls, 10 called strikes, and finished off eight outs with his knuckleball.

“The knuckleball is definitely an outlier pitch because even if you know it’s coming, there’s no guarantee that you’re going to get one that’s good to hit,” Kyle Higashioka said after catching for Waldron, as he has virtually all season. “It’s dancing out there like crazy. So regardless of whether you’re looking for it or not, if he throws the good one, it’s very unlikely that somebody’s going to really square it up.”

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

The Phillies aren't the ones talking about Waldron's knuckleball. Miami's Jazz Chisolm Jr. and Nick Gordon recently spoke about it, and Major League Baseball shared their thoughts on the league's official X (formerly Twitter) account.

"That's probably the best pitch I've ever seen in baseball," Chisolm said. "It's going everywhere. Go that way, that way. We were losing and I came back to the dugout. I said, 'Bro, I can't be mad. That thing is going everywhere.' It was a good pitch."

Waldron beat the Marlins on May 28 at Petco Park, pitching seven innings and only allowing six hits while striking out eight.