Jordan Yamamoto continues to impress as he held the Padres to two runs in five innings as the Marlins take the game 12-7. Once again, Yamamoto keeps the ball in the park. He is the only pitcher in the majors with at least 30 IP and no home runs allowed.

Once might expect a pitcher who does not allow many home runs to keep the ball on the ground, but not Yamamoto. A plurality of his balls are hit in the air, and he gets a good amount of pop ups. This suggests he gets great backspin on his four-seam fastball, with the ball sinking less than expected. Indeed, this chart at Brooks Baseball gives some credence to that. This was Matt Cain‘s strength at the height of his career. The ability to induce fly balls that come down in gloves is a very nice strength for a pitcher.