7-21-2025 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X
After another rough series this weekend, the Pirates will try to rebound – but after losing three straight to one of the worst teams in baseball, they’ll have to face off against of one of the best as they welcome the Tigers to the Steel City with Jack Flaherty slated to take the bump for game 1.
A long-time Cardinal, Flaherty excelled in 2024 – his first full season out of St. Louis – as he posted a 13-7 record with a 3.17 ERA across 162 innings pitched between the Tigers and Los Angeles Dodgers which culminated in the 29-year old righty winning his first World Series with LA.
His second go-round with the Tigers has not been quite as successful as he enters today with a less impressive 4.65 ERA over 100.2 innings of work as the Tigers are 6-13 in games started by Flaherty despite a 54-27 record when any other pitcher toes the rubber to start the game.
The Bucs were surprisingly solid when they faced Flaherty last August while with the Dodgers, raking him for 4 runs over 5.2 innings while notching 9 hits (2 home runs) and a walk against 10 strikeouts – and that’s the part that has been consistent for the veteran righty.
Among qualified starting pitchers this season, Flaherty ranks 7th in strikeout rate (29.5%) and has the 5th highest mark dating back to the start of the 2024 season with a 29.7% rate and 318 strikeouts through 262.2 innings over that stretch.
Flaherty leans mainly on a 3-pitch mix: a low-90s 4-seam, a high-70s knuckle-curve and a mid-80s slider working low in the zone with his secondaries while pounding the batters upstairs with heat.
The breaking stuff has been a REAL challenge for opposing hitters as Flaherty is holding hitters to a .204 batting average with a 39.3% whiff rate combined with his slider and curve.
Lefties have had the most success against his fastball as they are batting .288 and slugging .600 against the offering with 7 of his 19 total home runs surrendered coming against the pitch via left handed hitters.
Right-handed hitters might want to target the slider, which can come across flat and hang up in the zone in these situations. While they are only hitting .244 against Flaherty’s slider, the xBA of .290 and xSLG of .508 are both much higher than against any of his other offerings.
Despite the strong overall numbers, Flaherty has been less proficient when pitching on the road as opponents are posting nearly 80 points of batting average more than when Jack is taking the bump at Comerica Park.
Key to victory today will be dependent on how determined this team is to break out of their funk. Can they rise to the occasion and actually put some runs on the board for their ace starter or will they continue to fizzle in another disappointing game in an absolutely disappointing season?
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