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Highest Chase Rate in MLB 2026
Source MLB StatcastThrough 517 qualified pitchersWindow: 2026 regular season
Garrett Whitlock leads pitchers with 100+ batters faced in chase rate in the 2026 regular season at 42.1%. The top three are Garrett Whitlock, Josh Hader, Tanner Scott, from Statcast data. Every player here is a playable card.
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Play a half-inning in our Statcast-driven sim. Chase Rate is one of the real numbers behind every card's rating, and Garrett Whitlock's 42.1% is a big part of why he is rated 87.
What chase rate measures
Chase rate (O-Chase%) is the percentage of pitches a pitcher throws OUTSIDE the strike zone that the hitter swings at. It measures a pitcher's ability to entice hitters to expand the zone — breaking balls that look like strikes before diving off the plate, two-seamers that run off the inside edge. League average sits around 28-31%; elite zone-manipulators push hitters past 35%. Unlike whiff rate, which rewards pure miss-bats, chase rate rewards pitch design and tunneling — the deception that makes a hitter commit to a pitch he should take. Higher is better for the pitcher, and this is the chase rate pitchers induce, not the chase rate hitters show. Pitchers need at least 100 batters faced.
Why chase rate matters
Chase rate complements whiff rate: a pitcher with a high chase rate but modest whiff rate is often one sequencing tweak away from a strikeout spike (the swings are already there, they just need to miss). It is one of the stickiest pitcher skills year-over-year and a leading indicator for breakout relievers.
Built from MLB Statcast data, refreshed nightly. Pitchers need at least 100 batters faced. Regular-season data only; teams shown are each player's 2026 MLB club.
New to the metric? What is chase rate? Read the definition, formula, and a worked example.
Questions
Who leads MLB in chase rate in 2026?
Garrett Whitlock leads pitchers with 100+ batters faced in chase rate in the 2026 regular season at 42.1%. The top three are Garrett Whitlock, Josh Hader, Tanner Scott, based on real Statcast data.
What is chase rate in baseball?
Chase rate (O-Chase%) is the percentage of pitches a pitcher throws OUTSIDE the strike zone that the hitter swings at. It measures a pitcher's ability to entice hitters to expand the zone — breaking balls that look like strikes before diving off the plate, two-seamers that run off the inside edge. League average sits around 28-31%; elite zone-manipulators push hitters past 35%. Unlike whiff rate, which rewards pure miss-bats, chase rate rewards pitch design and tunneling — the deception that makes a hitter commit to a pitch he should take. Higher is better for the pitcher, and this is the chase rate pitchers induce, not the chase rate hitters show. Pitchers need at least 100 batters faced.
Why does chase rate matter?
Chase rate complements whiff rate: a pitcher with a high chase rate but modest whiff rate is often one sequencing tweak away from a strikeout spike (the swings are already there, they just need to miss). It is one of the stickiest pitcher skills year-over-year and a leading indicator for breakout relievers.