Matt Vierling vs Kevin Gausman

The Almanac's Take

Vierling enters this matchup without a platoon edge — both he and Gausman are right-handed, which is the baseline disadvantage you'd expect. His season line (.230/.301/.372, .673 OPS) reflects a functional but unspectacular hitter, and Gausman's 3.48 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 5.29 K/BB ratio make him one of the harder matchups to target right now. The 19-PA head-to-head is too thin to lean on — just 2 hits, 6 strikeouts, and an 86.5 mph average exit velo off Gausman's heavy 4-seam/splitter mix tells you something, but not much. Gausman is the clear play here; Vierling isn't the bat to attack him with.

Career head-to-head

AVG

.111

2-for-18

PA

19

HR

0

K

6

BB

1

Pitches seen

86

Avg exit velo

86.5 mph

Career meetings in the Statcast era (2015–present). Even a clear edge over a handful of plate appearances is a small sample — read it as color, not a projection.

Pitch mix to the batter

Plate-appearance log

• 2026-05-17Field Out · Slider 86.0 mph · 73.2 mph EV
• 2026-05-17Field Out · Split-Finger 83.9 mph · 76.3 mph EV
• 2025-07-26Strikeout · 4-Seam Fastball 93.9 mph
• 2025-07-26Truncated Pa · 4-Seam Fastball 94.2 mph
• 2025-07-26Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 92.8 mph · 107.8 mph EV
• 2024-05-23Field Out
• 2024-05-23Strikeout
• 2024-05-23Field Out
• 2023-07-08Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 92.1 mph · 97.1 mph EV
• 2023-07-08Strikeout · 4-Seam Fastball 96.4 mph
• 2023-07-08Walk · Split-Finger 85.8 mph
• 2023-04-12Strikeout · Split-Finger 86.7 mph
• 2023-04-12Fielders Choice Out · 4-Seam Fastball 96.9 mph · 74.2 mph EV
• 2023-04-12Strikeout · Split-Finger 86.4 mph
• 2023-04-12Strikeout · Split-Finger 87.2 mph
• 2023-03-20Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 95.3 mph · 96.7 mph EV
• 2023-03-20Field Out · 4-Seam Fastball 95.8 mph · 96.6 mph EV
• 2022-09-21Single · Slider 86.0 mph · 72.6 mph EV
• 2022-09-21Single · Split-Finger 85.7 mph · 83.6 mph EV