Sidespinning Up-Shoot Fastball Has Will Warren Thriving In Yankees’ Rotation
Will Warren has come a long way since the New York Yankees selected him in the eighth round of the 2021 draft out of Southeastern Louisiana University. He has also made significant progress since his debut here at FanGraphs following the 2022 season that saw him reach Double-A. Finding his four-seam fastball to be an effective weapon is a big reason why. When I interviewed Warren four years ago, his offerings of choice were a sweeper and a single seam sinker.
His numbers in the current campaign are solid. Building on the first full major league season of 2025 in which he went 9-8 with a 4.44 ERA, the 27-year-old right-hander struck out 17 times to a 3.73 ERA and 3.57 FIP over 89 1/3 innings. Continuing to establish himself in the Yankees’ starting rotation, he tallies seven wins among his 10 starts.
How and why did Warren go from a pitcher who relies heavily on the sinker to one who attacks batters with a 93.7-mph 4-seamer?
“I always had a four-seam fastball, but it was like, ‘He’s throwing low arm and he’s not getting the ball back that well,'” explained Brandon, a Mississippi native. “It was like, ‘Why is he throwing four?’ But then we say, ‘Hey, let’s keep the gyro, let’s have a sidespin, up-shoot fastball.’ I started working on it a lot and it was missing a lot of barrels, so it was like, ‘Okay, this pitch might play a little bit.’ I got into it a lot last year, and it’s changed my whole arsenal.”
It might be more accurate to say that his usage has changed. Warren’s repertoire, which includes two fastballs including a sweeper, curveball, and changeup, has not changed. He just started to accept the pitch that “looked like it was cutting, because of my pitch angle,” rather than believing that it would not play at the highest level. Letting go of trying to do what you didn’t do is part of the process.
“I was trying to throw 18-inch straight heaters like everyone else with a four-seam,” Warren explained. “I was trying to change the angle of the arm and go up on the ball, trying to go up and get more vert. Over time, through the conversations we had, I realized that I didn’t need to. When I was throwing at work. That light bulb went off in my head. I started to trust it a little more and throw it with more confidence. You know how it is. When you throw with full confidence.”
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According to Matt Blake, where Warren pitches doesn’t just work, it has a big impact on his performance.
“He’s got a tricky anglo,” the Yankees coach said. “From a low spot, he’s got a slow four-seam to it and a little bit of a cut to it, and he does a great job of getting it to good spots. We’ve since moved him to third. [prior to this season]a difficult angle that you don’t see much, and [four-seam] to have some sort of natural flatness to it in the area. A good night’s sleep.”
How much of the confidence that permeates his most-used pitch — coupled with the confidence that comes with success — is a factor in what shapes a career season?
“It’s not that easy,” said Warren, whose four-seamer has been thrown at a 39.3% clip and has a .206 batting average against a .374 slugging percentage. “This is a really tough game. But we have a lot of experienced guys who have helped me in the last year and a half. I’ve been learning from them. At the end of the day, it comes down to, you play well when you play in the big league, so lean on your strength. You can change some things here and there, but keep the main thing.
“Having more experience under my belt has helped me learn to pitch here,” the righty added. “When I get here … I mean, obviously this isn’t Triple-A anymore. These guys hit the yard a little bit. Along with believing in yourself and trusting that you belong, getting experience with every pitch and every start is only going to help.”
As we were wrapping up our interview, which took place in the visiting dugout at Fenway Park, Gerrit Cole stopped by and said hello on his way to the clubhouse. I went on to ask Warren what he learned from the six-time All-Star and 2023 Cy Young Award winner.
“I learned a lot from Gerrit,” Warren replied. “I’m not going to give away all the secrets, but the bottom line is, like I said, you’re here for a reason. That’s why we’re all here. Gerrit told me I’m a really good pitcher. He said whatever Will Warren does, go out there and do it right. Hitting is tough, so just go out there and throw.”
