Jhoan Duran’s 101-MPH Splinker Might Be the Nastiest Pitch in MLB

Twins closer Jhoan Durán unleashed a pitch Tuesday night that seemed utterly impossible to hit. And it comes with a very cool name: splinker. 

The 25-year-old right-hander struck out White Sox first baseman Andrew Vaughn on Tuesday night with one of those pitches, which hit 101 mph on the radar gun and left everyone watching in awe.

MLB.com had some details earlier this month on the pitch: 

The name is a portmanteau of “splitter” and “sinker,” and that’s really the essence of the pitch. Duran uses a split-fingered grip and throws it as hard as he can, causing it to move like the most violent sinker you’ve ever seen, falling off the table to his arm side.

That description is pretty accurate because look at this thing:

Jhoan Duran's 101mph Splinker grip/release pic.twitter.com/bszFMdqlU7

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 12, 2023

That could be a nightmare for hitters for years to come. 

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MLB fans couldn’t believe what they had seen:

This is illegal....right? https://t.co/0d9DgOSPgY

— Sir (@SirPlat69) April 12, 2023

Sorcery https://t.co/gcPDUjta5C

— Andrew (@A_Loadingg) April 12, 2023

How u sposed to hit this https://t.co/DnTIF2BCTd

— JD fan acct (@JakeRait) April 12, 2023

We should probably just rename it the "Evader" because all it's going to do is evade bats. Also, at the ASG, let have him throw it 10 times in a row to Judge and see how many times he hits it. https://t.co/ukdWUAF3Uq

— Danny (@DannyNovaScotia) April 12, 2023

This doesn’t make any sense. Hitting a baseball is getting harder every year. https://t.co/oXXYS9z2oE

— Kendell Hollowell (@KHollowell_) April 12, 2023