Joey Volchko, Jacob Misiorowski & the Craft of Pitching

Joey Volchko, Jacob Misiorowski & the Craft of Pitching

The same weekend, two of the most impressive pitching performances of the year — one from a junior at Georgia, one from a second-year Brewer. Joey Volchko punched out 15 over a complete game against Texas in the CWS opener. Jacob Misiorowski punched out 15 over a complete game against the Phillies on 95 pitches. Same number. Different level. Same underlying story about what good pitching development actually looks like. This BDH walks through both case studies in detail. Volchko in Athens — a high-upside Stanford transfer who'd been told for years to throw a four-seamer he couldn't throw. Georgia and Coach Wes Johnson got him in the lab, saw the natural cut, threw out the four-seam, made the cutter the number one, reframed the slider as a harder bullet, added a sweeper, then layered in a seam-shifted-wake sinker in the fall. They didn't change the athlete. They identified what he did best and built the repertoire around it. Result: a 15-K complete game on the biggest stage of his career, and a first-round draft profile. Misiorowski in Milwaukee — a high-walk minor leaguer two years ago, now a 105-in-the-tank big league starter throwing 95-pitch complete-game shutouts. The conversation reframes the cleanest line in modern pitching development: there is a difference between control (throwing strikes) and command (throwing strikes that play). Miz's in-zone rate is actually down. His first-pitch strike rate is up 8 points. Hitters are giving him more of the zone because they have to. The Brewers' system is the cleanest pitching development organization in baseball right now, and Misiorowski's arc is the proof. The back half opens up to the broader landscape: The Trey Turner slump — the leg-kick mechanics that have him stuck in 50/50, and why the breaking-ball whiff distance is the metric that confirms it Yordan Alvarez as the actual best hitter in baseball — "Juan Soto things at Aaron Judge's size" The Aaron Judge shelf situation The mid-season baseball tightening and the banana-peel outfield routes that came with it Christopher Sanchez's slider — average shape, elite value, because of the repertoire it lives inside A closing argument that we're watching the best baseball that's ever been played The throughline: The best pitching development at every level looks the same — don't fit guys into a box, find what they do best, and build the repertoire around it. Wes Johnson does it in Athens. The Brewers do it in Milwaukee. Different methods, same philosophy. This episode is the cleanest articulation of that idea Trevor and Dan have done on the pod. 00:00 Intro · CWS Weekend, Two 15-K Games 01:30 Joey Volchko · 15K vs Texas in Athens 04:00 The Georgia · Wes Johnson Pitching Lab 07:30 Don't Fit Pitchers Into a Box · The Individual Build 11:30 The Four-Seam, the Cutter, the Sinker · Repertoire Construction 15:30 The 48/37 Pitch Mix · When Off-Speed Is the Fastball 19:30 Beyond Nasty Stuff · The Next Layer of Pitching Development 24:30 Misiorowski · 15K vs the Phillies on 95 Pitches 28:00 Control vs Command · The Real Distinction 32:30 The Brewers as the Banner Pitching Development Org 36:00 The Regression-Proof Fastball 40:00 Trey Turner · The Leg Kick and the 50/50 46:00 Aaron Judge on the Shelf · The Best Hitter Conversation 49:00 Yordan Alvarez · Juan Soto Things at Aaron Judge's Size 53:30 The Tightened Ball · Banana-Peel Outfield Routes 58:00 Christopher Sanchez's Slider · Why Repertoire Beats Pitch Grade 1:02:00 Closing · The Best Baseball That's Ever Been Played

The Hitting Data That Predicts Major League Success

A regionals-Sunday BDH that lands on one of the cleanest hitter-evaluation frameworks Trevor's laid out on the pod.The cold open: an insider defense of Tre Phelps after his celebration set off the old-school crowd. Trevor went down to Athens, spent 45 minutes with him off camera, and is on the record about who Tre actually is. Then West Virginia + Steve Sabins make their first program-history trip to Omaha — Sabins is the No. 1 head coach Trevor would hire if he were running a Power Four program right now.The middle of the show is Cristopher Sanchez's historic May — 50.2 scoreless innings, near-Hershiser territory, dominant with three pitches in a six-pitch era. Then Cleveland's offensive rookie crop (Bazzana, DeLauder, the broader call-up class) and why young hitters are debuting more "ready" than they've ever been.The back half is the keeper: the hitter data that actually predicts who plays at the top. Three numbers — contact rate, in-zone swing decisions, and exit velocity — and the rule that you need at least two of three at an elite level. The Kurtz-vs-Caglianone comparison shows how raw athleticism can carry you through college and the minors but flips on you at the top if you don't check the boxes.Topics covered:The Tre Phelps celebration and an insider defense of his actual character (30 minutes early, asking questions, no entitlement)Why Coach Wes Johnson + the Georgia community see Tre the way Trevor does after meeting himWest Virginia + Steve Sabins's first-ever trip to Omaha, and why Sabins is the No. 1 head coach Trevor would hireCristopher Sanchez's historic May — 15.2 scoreless, near Hershiser, dominance with three pitchesThe Sanchez sinker + change-up tandem and how a 6'6" lefty "makes the plate bigger"60% ground ball rate + elite swing-and-miss = a wild card threat with Wheeler behind himThe offensive rookie crop — Bazzana, DeLauder, JJ Wetherholt, Cole Emerson — and why they're coming up readier than everThe ABS zone + modern training resources as the reason young hitters debut as closer-to-finished productsThe hitter evaluation framework — contact rate, in-zone swing decisions, exit velocityThe 2024 draft test: every box-checker is in the big leagues right now (except Charlie Condon)The Kurtz-vs-Caglianone comparison — out-athleting the level vs checking the boxesWhy bad-ball-hitter power doesn't translate to the topWhy the floor of a roster spot is built on contact + zone control, not slugWhy this matters:The slash line is still the way most casual coverage talks about hitters. Inside the actual front offices, the conversation lives in barrel, contact, chase, and exit velocity — and the rule that you need at least two of three at elite to play at the top. This episode is the cleanest framework Trevor's broken down on the pod, with the 2024 draft as the working proof. 00:00 Intro · First Scorcher of Summer 02:00 The Tre Phelps Celebration · Insider Defense 13:30 Steve Sabins + West Virginia to Omaha 19:00 Cristopher Sanchez's Historic May 26:00 Three Pitches in a Six-Pitch Era 33:00 Sanchez + Wheeler · The Wild Card Threat 38:00 The Rookie Crop · Why Hitters Come Up Ready 44:00 The Hitter Evaluation Framework 50:00 Kurtz vs Caglianone · The Athlete vs The Box-Checker 58:00 The 2024 Draft Test · Box-Checkers Already in the Bigs 1:03:00 Why the Floor Wins Lineups

College Baseball Regionals, the Roster Market, and Coaching Up at the Power 4

A regionals Sunday BDH on the market inefficiency every Power Four program is missing — and the coaching gap that lets mid-majors keep upsetting them. Trevor and Dan dig into the roster-build chaos at the top of college baseball: there's no salary cap, no salary floor, no shared data, and no clean market for player value. Programs are paying gut feelings, getting outflanked by mid-majors who actually coach the little things, and losing regional games because their corner infielder doesn't know to back up on two strikes. Topics covered: Recruiting AT the regionals — how a Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year gets plucked to LSU in real time Why the mid-major mindset has to be "compliment, not punishment" when players leave The roster-market problem — no comparable contract data, agents who are uncles, the SEC vs ACC ~50% price gap The "afraid to miss" trap — power-four programs chasing each other's rumors instead of building to their identity Why LSU isn't in the 2026 tournament (calendar math) and why Georgia is (built for next season, not last) The D3-coach-as-Director-of-Defense thesis: "I can recruit. I have the personality. But can I coach?" The Florida 3B two-strike story — what bad fundamentals actually cost a postseason team Tim Corbin's bunt defense ("Whoever gets there first throws it to the right base") and 19 straight regionals The Dodgers wheel play and why MLB Network embarrassed itself treating it like a new invention The three phases of the postseason: Regionals (chaos) → Supers (chalk) → Omaha (top-end talent + depth) Day games vs night games — the rain-delay edge nobody seems to schedule for Why this matters: College baseball is in its messiest competitive era — bigger gaps between programs, smaller rosters, more transfer movement, and a market with no rules. The programs that win the regional weekends aren't the most talented. They're the ones who built to their identity and coached the fundamentals nobody at the top is paying attention to. The takeaway is uncomfortable for big-budget programs: hire someone who can actually teach two-strike infield positioning. ───────────────────────────────── 00:00 Intro · Dan & Trevor + Moving Day 02:54 Setting Up the Regionals · Why Upsets Happen 05:12 Recruiting AT the Regionals · The Pluck-Up Reality 13:28 The Roster Build Problem · No Market in College Baseball 17:51 Afraid to Miss · The Market Inefficiency 26:54 Lose Your Identity, Chase Your Tail 30:36 Hire a D3 Director of Fundamentals 37:23 Tim Corbin's Simplified Bunt Defense 41:34 The Dodgers Wheel Play Embarrassment 47:44 Three Phases of Postseason · Regional · Super · Omaha 53:39 The Day-Game Edge

The Market Inefficiency Behind the Rays & Brewers Lineups

A Memorial Day BDH on the biggest narrative in mid-season MLB — and what most pundits are missing about it.Trevor and Dan break down why the Rays and Brewers have become the lineup case study of 2026, why "they're just bunting their way to wins" is wildly off the mark, and how the real story is a three-step roster-construction philosophy rooted in 162-game survival, not October sizzle.Topics covered:Why the Rays and Brewers became "the lineups everyone wants to emulate" — and what's actually inside them (Junior Caminero, James Wood, CJ Abrams, Bryce Turang all have 40-HR power; the rest of the roster is the inefficiency)The "raise the floor" thesis: getting rid of every hitter with a 25%+ K rate so the 7-8-9 spots stop killing ralliesThe Wilmer Flores extinction event — why three-true-outcome guys without unicorn ceilings no longer have roster spotsRule-change tailwinds: pitch clock, pickoff limit, ABS, shift elimination — and why they all favor athletic, contact-and-run lineupsWhy Kyle Schwarber has quietly become a top-tier no-shift beneficiaryDoug Glanville's "you take your strike zone with you" — and what ABS does to walk rates league-wideStolen-base-adjusted OPS as the next stat people will start tracking (Marlins, Guardians, Brewers, Rays atop SB; Yankees + Nats slug + run)The Mike Rizzo doctrine: "build for 90 wins, hope the bounce of the ball helps with the World Series"The Dodgers as the exception (cruise-control roster) — and why everyone else is playing for the October coin flipWhy the Brewers got swept by LA and the Phillies couldn't manufacture one run vs. NLDS — the limits of slugging-only and scrappy-onlySpringer's Game 7 HR vs. Seattle and what it means for "you still need the bomb" in OctoberWhy this matters:Every market-inefficiency conversation in MLB right now lands at the Rays and Brewers. Most are missing the actual machine: it's not the bunts, it's the roster ROI lens. Small-market orgs treat lineup spots like index funds — Apple/Google-tier stocks are unicorns, the rest of the roster is built to never lose money. That's the conversation pundits aren't having. 00:00 Intro · Memorial Day 04:10 The Setup · Rays + Brewers Lineup Question 07:10 The Unicorns: Caminero, Wood, Turang 10:30 Raise the Floor · The Market Inefficiency 16:30 The Mike Rizzo Doctrine · Build for 162 22:58 Index Funds, Not Apple · Roster ROI 26:15 Rule Changes · ABS, Pitch Clock, No Shift 33:46 Stolen-Base-Adjusted OPS · The New Ground Game 41:51 October Math · You Still Need the Bomb 54:40 Closing · Appreciating the New MLB

Why the Rays Kick Junior Caminero Out of the Cage at 100 MPH

Trevor responds to the Rays hitting coach's viral radio clip about kicking Junior Caminero out of the cage when he hits a ball over 100 mph. The takes online split into two camps — "stupid old-school strategy" vs. "finally somebody trashing exit velocity." Caminero needs to think slow down. Schwarber needs to think oppo gap. Different problems. Same framework. Real vs. feel.Topics:Why kicking a hitter out at 100 mph is more about bat speed intent than exit velocityCaminero's 21st-percentile squared-up rate and what it tells you about usable bat speedThe wild-horse hitter problem — and why athleticism masks it until it doesn'tKyle Schwarber's real-vs-feel framework with Chris YoungWhy the league leader in pull-air% trains himself to hit the ball to centerThe Christian Yelich blueprint vs. the Caminero/Schwarber blueprintData points referenced:Caminero: 79.8 mph avg bat speed (99th %tile), 116.9 max EV, 21st %tile squared-up%, 4th %tile launch-angle sweet spot, .535 SLG, 12 HRSchwarber: 32.5% whiff (13th %tile), 31.7% K (7th %tile), 32.7% pull-air%, 15% BB (90th %tile), 20 HR (MLB lead), pace for 65