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    • Brewers’ Devin Williams may have tipped his pitch before crushing Pete Alonso homer
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    Brewers’ Devin Williams may have tipped his pitch before crushing Pete Alonso homer

    Vaseline Posted on

    Devin Williams may have given the Mets just the tiniest bit of information they needed to further exploit the former All-Star and extend their miracle streak.

    Williams may have tilted his pitches during his fateful ninth inning, in which he gave up a two-run lead by allowing four runs in the Mets’ dramatic 4-2 Game 3 victory, as theorized in a breakdown by Jomboy Media and confirmed by former Twins infielder and player. Jomboy Media analyst Trevor Plouffe.

    The evidence presented by James “Jomboy” O’Brien shows that Williams held his glove slightly differently when throwing his changeup and his fastball, which could have provided the small window the Mets needed as Williams relied solely on those two pitches on Thursday night trusted.

    Williams’ changeup is one of the most devastating pitches in the sport, but even the best pitches lose some of their effectiveness when a hitter knows it’s coming.

    The closer threw 17 changeups and 17 four-seamers (fastballs) on Thursday, relying on his bread and butter to try to close out a 2-0 game entering the ninth inning.

    When Williams threw his fastball, his glove appeared to be closer to his face and his right hand appeared to be deeper in his glove compared to both positions before his changeup.

    The glove also appeared to be flatter for his change.

    Williams’ glove for a fastball (l) and changeup (right). @JomboyMedia/YouTube
    The yellow shade shows how Williams held his glove closer to his face for a fastball. @JomboyMedia/YouTube

    O’Brien noted that the different grips required for a changeup versus the four-seam play a role in why glove positioning on the pitches would be different.

    He posted a text exchange with Plouffe about his theory, in which the former MLBer replied, “Definitely see some flat gloves.”

    The two gloves overlapped, with the change being green. @JomboyMedia/YouTube

    Francisco Lindor, who led off the inning with a walk, saw five fastballs and three changes in his at-bat before Williams sparked Mark Vientos with four pitches, including three changes.

    Brandon Nimmo saw three changes in his at-bat and singled on an 0-2 changeup in the zone that perhaps took more off the plate than Williams wanted.

    The pitch selection for Nimmo. MLB.com

    Before Pete Alonso came on the board, Mets coach Jeremy Barnes spoke to Alonso and seemingly said, “that’s the change.”

    The full context is missing because it’s a short segment, but Alonso then appears to say “I gotcha” before gesturing with his arm as he walks up to the plate.

    Alonso then looked at a center-center changeup for pitch one that could have been penalized before Williams misfired with two fastballs and a changeup.

    Mets coach Jeremy Barnes talks to Alonso. @JomboyMedia/YouTube
    Alonso spoke back to Barnes and gestured with his arm as if to indicate he recognized something. @JomboyMedia/YouTube

    Williams was left with a 3-1 count and then returned to his changeup and Alonso pounced on a pitch that took way too much of the plate for a three-run go-ahead home run that gave the Mets a 3-2 lead.

    “It could have been better, but it wasn’t the worst pitch I’ve ever thrown,” Williams told ESPN. “I wanted to get away with it. I have it there. It was a good example of scoring.”

    The pitch sequence for Alonso, with No. 5 landing on the seats. MLB.com

    A review of Williams’ pitches also shows that, aside from Vientos, the Mets didn’t swing and missed a lot against Williams, with 15 of their 20 swings (75 percent) resulting in some kind of contact.

    If you subtract Vientos, who smoked on two of those three swings, they recorded either a hit, an out or a foul ball on 14 of 17 swings (82.4 percent).

    Devin Williams reacts during the ninth inning on Thursday. Getty Images

    Williams missed the plate more often with his fastball, throwing seven of 17 for balls and the Mets connected on seven of 10 pitches they swung at.

    The righty threw just four balls among his 17 substitutions, and his opponents connected on eight of the 12 (67 percent) offerings they committed to.

    Devin Williams’ pitch usage in the ninth inning

    Result Fastball (17) Change (17)
    Swinging strike 2 3
    Hit 1 2
    Ball 7 4
    Called a strike 1 2
    Crazy 5 6
    Out 1 0
    Pitch selection courtesy of MLB.com

    Although O’Brien makes a solid argument, there are also objections to his theory.

    Thursday marked the third time the Mets saw Williams dating last Saturday, giving them ample time to become familiar with his pitches.

    The pitch where Pete Alonso hit a triple bomb. AP

    Williams also couldn’t locate his pitches very well and even hit Jesse Winker two batters after the homer.

    The Alonso at-bat consisted of a center-center change on the first pitch before the 3-1 pitch landed in a spot where Alonso could roll the ball out to right field.

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