Sliders aren’t supposed to move like this

The Lineup: Pregame Edition

Friday, April 10

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Tatsuya Imai

Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today’s games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Today’s edition is brought to you by David Adler.

We thought we knew which way a slider was supposed to move. 

Boy were we wrong. 

Tatsuya Imai and his “wrong-way slider” are back on the mound tonight for the Astros’ series opener against the Mariners (9:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV/Space City Home Network/Mariners.TV/KING 5) — after the physics-defying pitch broke the internet last weekend. 

Houston’s newest starter throws one of the funkiest pitches in the big leagues: a slider that breaks the opposite way of almost every slider in the world. 

An animated GIF of Tatsuya Imai's wrong-way slider

See, for a right-handed pitcher like Imai, a normal slider breaks from right to left. But Imai’s slider goes in the opposite direction. It breaks from left to right. And it’s no optical illusion, either. 

Imai’s slider is averaging six inches of horizontal break to his arm side — and some of the ones he’s throwing are breaking over a foot in that direction. That’s just crazy.

An animated GIF of Tatsuya Imai's slider with Gameday 3D tracking

Imai gets by far the most arm-side slider movement of any Major League pitcher.

Pitchers with “wrong-way” slider movement

  • Tatsuya Imai (Astros): 6 inches
  • Alex Lange (Royals): 1 inch
  • Wandy Peralta (Padres): 1 inch
  • Lucas Erceg (Royals): 1 inch
  • Brock Burke (Reds): 1 inch
  • George Klassen (Angels): 1 inch
  • Connelly Early (Red Sox): 1 inch
  • Cole Wilcox (Mariners): 1 inch
  • Joe Ryan (Twins): <1 inch
  • Cole Ragans (Royals): <1 inch

Imai’s slider isn’t like any other pitch in the Majors right now. The “wrong-way slider” is the No. 1 weapon that the former Saitama Seibu Lions ace brought over from Japan. 

We’ve got everything you need to know about Imai’s wrong-way slider right here. 

 

GAMES OF THE NIGHT

Here are three more games to watch tonight.

1) Marlins at Tigers (6:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV/Marlins.TV/Detroit SportsNet)

Both of these teams are off to surprising starts. The upstart Marlins sit atop the NL East at 8-5 … but can they sustain it? The Tigers are on a five-game skid and sit at the bottom of the AL Central at 4-9, despite coming off back-to-back postseason appearances.   

2) Yankees at Rays (7:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV/MLB Network/YES/Rays.TV)

Luis Gil will be making his season debut on the mound for the Yankees, and he’ll have a lot of questions to answer. The 27-year-old was the American League Rookie of the Year just two years ago, but Gil didn’t look like himself in an injury-riddled 2025. Can he be electric again?

3) Rangers at Dodgers (10:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV/MLB Network/CW33/SportsNet LA) 


The Rangers just had a statement series against the division-rival Mariners, who they swept for the first time since 2023. But up next: the reigning World Series champs … and the Dodgers are looking as good as ever after a series win against the Blue Jays in a Fall Classic rematch.  

THE KID WHO SWINGS LIKE SCOTTIE

Chase DeLauter

It’s Masters week in the golf world … but we’ve got our own Scottie Scheffler right here in Major League Baseball.

That would be 24-year-old rookie phenom Chase DeLauter, who swings a baseball bat like the No. 1 golfer in the world swings a golf club. 

DeLauter, who’s ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 43 overall prospect, is tied for the Major League lead with five home runs as a rookie. But the thing that really makes this kid unique is his funky swing. 

So what makes DeLauter’s swing like Scheffler’s? Here are his five home runs … watch his back foot. 

An animated GIF of Chase DeLauter's home run swings

DeLauter has a big “scissor kick”-style movement with his back leg during his swing. His back foot moves the most of any Major League hitter during his swing, according to Statcast’s batting stance data.

It really is the spitting image of what Scheffler does when he drives a golf ball (aka, the “Scheffler Shuffle”). 

It’s also like what Mike Trout does when he swings a baseball bat — and Trout just so happens to have been DeLauter’s idol growing up.

DeLauter and the Guardians face the Braves tonight in Atlanta at 7:15 p.m. ET (MLB.TV/CLEGuardians.TV/BravesVision).

We’ve got a deep dive on DeLauter and his unique swing here. 

IT’S MILLER TIME (AND OTHER CRAZY STATS)

Mason Miller

Padres closer Mason Miller is absolutely absurd. 

First of all, he hasn’t allowed a run in his last 27 2/3 innings going back to last year. That’s easily the longest active scoreless-inning streak in the Majors. 

Second of all, he’s struck out 16 of the 21 batters he’s faced this season. That’s over 75%! That seems impossible. Miller’s current K pace comes out to … 22.7 strikeouts per nine innings. 

And third of all, he just threw the fastest pitch of the season last night — a 103.4 mph heater to strike out the Rockies’ Ezequiel Tovar. That was the fastest regular-season K by a Padres pitcher in the entire pitch tracking era, which goes back to 2008.

An animated GIF of Mason Miller's 103.4 mph strikeout

For more on Miller and the other craziest stats of the week in baseball, Sarah Langs has you covered.  

POKÉMON GO TO THE PARK

Pokémon GO and MLB

Calling all baseball-loving Pokémon trainers! 

The MLB x Pokémon GO collab is back for another season. 

Just like last year, all 30 MLB ballparks will feature unique Pokémon GO experiences — including MLB team-branded PokéStops, Gyms and Official Routes.

Some Major League teams will also have Pokémon GO-themed game days throughout the 2026 season. 

So if you’re a baseball fan and a Pokémon fan, head to a game and start throwing Poké Balls. 

THIS BOBBLEHEAD POPS OFF THE PAGE

The Brewers' Miz Trading Card Bobblehead

Is it better to be lucky or good? Jacob Misiorowski doesn’t have to answer that existential question. 

He’s good: The Brewers phenom currently leads the Major Leagues in strikeouts, with 28 in three starts. And he’s lucky: Misiorowski has enjoyed remarkable success at pulling trading cards from packs. 

Last year alone, the Miz pulled a holographic Charizard from a vintage Pokémon pack — if you’re not familiar, it’s a legitimate holy grail — and a rare card of himself at a card shop. 

In that spirit, the first 25,000 fans through the gates at Saturday’s Brewers-Nationals game (7:10 p.m. ET/6:10 p.m. CT) get a Miz Trading Card Bobblehead. It’s a bobblehead … it’s a trading card … it’s both.  

Add it to your collection, and hopefully some of the Miz’s good fortune will rub off on you. 

 

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Published by RJ Hamster

I was born on 6 August 1956 in San Francisco, California to Janet and (the late) Richard Hovis. I grew up in Santa Monica, California where I attended elementary, junior high school, and high school (graduating in 1974), in addition to involvement in sports and recreation (Little League +, the Boy’s Club ++). Further, it was in elementary school – St. Augustine’s By-the -Sea Parish School that I found, and made the choice to truly journey with God. I attended Arizona State University from 1974 to 1977 – seeking to become an architect, however, I was not accepted, and, as such, I graduated with a Liberal Arts degree. Upon graduation from Arizona State University, I attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and studied City and Regional Planning at the Master’s level. I successfully completed one (1) year in a two (2) year program – I did not complete the Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning – due to personal reasons. I returned to Santa Monica where I started (October 1979) my career as graphic designer with Exxon Company, USA. I spent five years with Exxon Company, USA. While working with Exxon Company, USA I was accepted into architectural school – Sci-Arc in Southern California, however, I did not attend preferring to stay with Exxon.. In 1982 I married Laura Flosi and in April 1983 we had our one and only child – Lauren Alain Hovis – a gift from God. We moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1984 from Los Angeles, where I went to work as a graphic designer with Kitchell CEM (from 1985 -1987). From 1987 – 1995 I was an independent contractor, and a registered representative in mortgage finance, financial management, graphic design, and drafting. Further, I attended the University of Phoenix and successfully obtained a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) in 1982. I was also a member of the Scottsdale Jaycees, where I became very involved in community events and projects. In 1994, I accepted a cartography position with the Defense Mapping Agency in Reston, Virginia. As such, I relocated from Phoenix to Reston. In 1998, I was accepted and worked as a Visual Information Officer with the Central Intelligence Agency. In 2002, I worked as a Support Officer until my retirement (due to a need for shoulder surgery) in September 2018. Away from my Federal Government service, I have been involved in various organizations and activities in Northern Virginia. In November of 2011, I married Rebecca Ouellette in Santa Monica, California. I reside in San Tan Valley, AZ with my two hamster - Jess and Timothy, our fish, our lizard - RJ Lizard., and our cats - Pearl and Grey. As to hobbies, I enjoy playing sports, attending sporting events, mentoring individuals from financial management to hamsters, building models, photography, travel, multimedia design, managing partner for RJ Hamster, and jazz – smooth jazz to a samba or a bossa nova. Love and God Bless, Peter – aka RJ Hamster Jo hi

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