Matt Waldron becomes the first MLB knuckleballer since 2021
\n”, “providerName”: “Twitter”, “providerUrl”: “https://twitter.com”, “type”: “oembed”, “width”:550, “contentType”: “rich”},{ “__typename”: “Markdown”, “content”: “Waldron, an 18th-round pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, was the player later named in the 2020 trade that brought Mike Clevinger to San Diego and Josh sent Naylor and Cal Quantrill to Cleveland. Waldron played a knuckleball before arriving, but it wasn’t until Summer 21 with the Padres that he began using the field regularly after the organization encouraged him to do so.\n\nWaldron learned the news of his big league call on Thursday when he A scouting report on the Nationals lineup was presented by Triple-A pitching coach Scott Mitchell, who asked, “How are you going to attack these guys?”\n\nThe answer: Unlike any other big league pitcher., type:text The knuckleball is alive.\nThe Padres, who need a starting spot against the Nationals on Saturday, plan to promote 26-year-old right-hander Matt Waldron, who will become the first regular knuckleballer to play in the big pitch leagues since Mickey Jannis did this for the Orioles in 2021.\n“It”,”tagline({\”formatString\”:\”none\”})”:null,”tags”:[{“__typename”:”InternalTag”,”slug”:”storytype-article”,”title”:”Article”,”type”:”article”},{“__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”apple-news”,”title”:”Apple News”,”type”:”taxonomy”},{“__typename”:”ContributorTag”,”slug”:”aj-cassavell”,”title”:”AJ Cassavell”,”type”:”contributor”},{“__typename”:”TeamTag”,”slug”:”teamid-135″,”title”:”San Diego Padres”,”team”:{“__ref”:”Team:135″},”type”:”team”},{“__typename”:”GameTag”,”slug”:”gamepk-717642″,”title”:”2023/06/23 was@sd”,”type”:”game”},{“__typename”:”PersonTag”,”slug”:”playerid-663362″,”title”:”Matt Waldron”,”person”:{“__ref”:”Person:663362″},”type”:”player”},{“__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”mlb-top-prospects”,”title”:”MLB Top Prospects”,”type”:”taxonomy”}]”type”: “story”, “thumbnail”: “https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/{formatInstructions}/mlb/cwrzaefb9a7nxd7bgcmi”, “title”: “Matt Waldron will be his first MLB knuckleballer since 2021″}},”Person:663362”:{“__typename”:”Person”,”id”:663362},”Team:135″:{“__typename”:”Team”,”id”: 135}}} window.adobeAnalytics = {“reportingSuiteId”: “mlbglobal08, mlbcom08”, “linkInternalFilters”: “mlb”} window.globalState = {“tracking_title”: “Major League Baseball”, “lang”: “en”} window.appId = ” /*–>*/
Waldron gets the call because Wacha is missing a turn due to shoulder fatigue
00:47 UTC
SAN DIEGO – The knuckleball is alive.
The Padres, who need a starting berth against the Nationals on Saturday, plan to promote 26-year-old right-hander Matt Waldron – who will be the first regular knuckleballer to play in the big leagues since Mickey Jannis did it for the Orioles in year 2021.
“It fulfilled the dream that I’ve had all my life,” said Waldron, who joined the Padres’ taxi team on Friday. “…I don’t even know if it was hit.”
Waldron’s call-up comes as the Padres plan to skip the start of Michael Wacha as he struggles with right shoulder fatigue. Manager Bob Melvin said the team is confident that Wacha will return to the rotation for his next assignment.
That left a chance for Waldron, whose arsenal also includes a fastball and a slider. He’s not a knuckleballer like Tim Wakefield or RA Dickey, right-handers who rely almost exclusively on the field.
But knuckleball is a primary weapon for Waldron, and his rise to the big leagues heralds the return of one of baseball’s most quirky disciplines — a field that has teetered on the verge of extinction in recent years.
In the 2021 season, Jannis threw 57 ankle balls in his only appearance. Aside from occasional pitchings from position players, Statcast has not tracked a knuckleball since. In the last five seasons, only Jannis, Ryan Feierabend and Steven Wright have thrown ankleballs regularly. The Padres have not had a regular ankle player since Charlie Haeger in 2008.
Waldron’s knuckle tops out at around 80mph – tougher than most. He has struggled in hitter-friendly triple-A El Paso this season, where he posted a 7.02 ERA in 14 appearances. Last season, he hit a 2.84 mark at the Double-A San Antonio. There is some speculation that the playing field may simply play better at sea level.
In any case, it’s completely unclear what to expect from Waldron on Saturday, including the number of times he’ll throw the pitch. With the notoriously unpredictable movement of an ankle ball, Melvin determined that Gary Sánchez will have the unenviable task of catching Waldron.
Melvin, himself a former catcher, put it bluntly: “You see it, you feel pressure, you push.”
Waldron, a Guardians round 18 pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, was the player later named in the 2020 trade that brought Mike Clevinger to San Diego and sent Josh Naylor and Cal Quantrill to Cleveland. Waldron played a knuckleball prior to his arrival, but it wasn’t until Summer 21 with the Padres that he began using the field regularly after the organization encouraged him to do so.
Waldron broke the news of his big-league call-up Thursday when he was presented with a scouting report on the Nationals lineup by Triple-A pitching coach Scott Mitchell, who asked, “How are you going to attack these guys?”
The answer: Unlike any other big league pitcher.