Speed, movement make Jake Arrieta’s slider tough pitch to hit

3:40 PM ET

Jake Arrieta’s dominance over the past two seasons has been well-documented. Here’s something new about the Chicago Cubs right-hander heading to Friday’s start against the Giants in San Francisco:

Slider speed

Highest average velocity on sliders this season (in mph)

Noah Syndergaard92Stephen Strasburg89Jake Arrieta89Matt Harvey88

A key aspect of Arrieta’s success has been his slider. He has the third-highest average velocity on the pitch of any qualified starter this season.

The pitch is not just fast — it’s deceptive. Arrieta’s slider moves horizontally as it crosses the plate at a faster rate than that of any other qualified pitcher (9.9 feet per second).

Early in his career, Arrieta didn’t use the slider much. He threw it 17 percent of the time in 2011, the high for his first five major league seasons. In 2014, his first full season with the Cubs, he threw a …

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