Shapes and Sizes of American League Central Pitchers
Cleveland Guardians
The Cleveland Guardians have turned out big-league arms in all sorts of shapes and sizes over the years. Here is a scatter plot of the height and weight of this year’s pitching staff.
Here are averages, maximums, and minimus from the athletes listed as pitchers on their 40-man roster.
Here’s your “average” pitcher from a physical point of view. James Karinchak at 6’3″ and 215 lbs fits the bill exactly. But I wouldn’t call him average at all. He and his curveball are crazy.
The lightest pitcher, by a lot, is Triston MacKenzie. He’s 165 lbs despite being 6’5″ giving him a BMI of 19.6. The lowest in the league. His mechanics are this amazing blend of elasticity and leverage.
The heaviest and tallest guy to break camp with the Guardians is Hunter Gaddis at 6’6″ and 260 lbs. Hunter throws hard but not super hard by MLB standards with an average fastball at 93.4 mph. The Guardians are pretty tall as a team with another guy at 6’6″ and two more at 6’5″ and only one pitcher listed under 6′.
The only pitcher coming in under the 6-foot mark is Eli Morgan. Here he is showing that you can pitch in the MLB while only standing 5’10”. It of course helps to have the skill to throw a ridiculous change-up.
Chicago White Sox
Here’s the scatter plot of the height and weight of pitchers that will be toeing the rubber on Chicago’s South Side.
The averages, maximums, and minimums for height, weight, and BMI are as follows
Here’s your average White Sox pitcher from the right side
Here’s Southside South Paw Aaron Bummer who’s the same height and weight as Kopech
Here’s one of the shortest pitchers listed at 6’1″- Tanner Banks
The tallest is 6’6″ Lucas Giolito. Despite being tall, he has, arguably, the shortest arm in the league.
The heaviest is Lance Lynn who logged a lot of inning for Team USA
The lightest pitcher on the roster at 190 lbs – Jimmy Lambert
Detroit Tigers
Here’s a scatter plot of the Tigers pitchers that were listed on their 40-man roster
Here are the average along the max and mi for height, weight, and BMI
Alex Lange at 6’3″ and 205lbs is the most “average” pitcher on the staff
Joey Wentz standing at 6’5″ is the tallest
Despite being 5 inches shorter, Will Vest at an even 6’0″, can throw harder than Joey Wentz averaging just under 95 mph.
The heaviest Tiger is José Cisnero. At 258 lbs and 6’3″ he’s got a BMI of 32.2 that he uses to average 95.4 mph.
The lightest is Chasen Shreve at 180 lbs. Will Vest is also 180 lbs but Chasen is almost the tallest at 6’4″ giving him a BMI of 21.9. He’s in the crafty lefty catagory and averages just over 90 mph with his heater.
Just a reference, a real tiger can weigh up to 500lbs and still move like this
Kansas City Royals
So far, this is the biggest staff we’ve covered. There isn’t anybody below 6 feet and one pitcher is just 5 pounds under the 200 lbs mark. Here’s the scatter plot of their 40-man roster of pitchers
Here are the averages, maximums, and minimums
Let’s look at some of these pitchers right before their lead leg hits the ground
Here’s your average-looking pitcher on their staff at 6’4″ and 217lbs
The shortest and lightest guy is also the oldest, Zach Grienke
Here’s one of the biggest and tallest at 6’4″ and 245 lbs. Carlos Hernández
Minnesota Twins
To round out the American League Central let’s look at the Twins pitching staff. Here is the scatter plot.
This table has their max, min, and averages for height, weight, and BMI.
Here’s an average-looking guy – Cole Sands at 6’3″ and 215 lbs
The Twins have of the biggest outliers in Bailey Ober. This guy is 6’9″ and 260 lbs.
Here’s a still picture of this giant on the mound
The only pitcher under 6 feet and 200 lbs is Sonny Gray. At 5’11 and 195lbs he’s 10 inches shorter and 65 lbs lighter. Obviously, his mechanics will look a lot different.
Here’s Sonny Gray in action