The mystery of Logan Webb’s sinker usage falloff might’ve been solved with the breaking news that the San Francisco Giants have placed their ostensible ace on the 15-day IL for a blister on his right middle finger.
Ah, that certainly feels like the best symbol for this entire season, to fans and players alike. A big ol’ middle finger. F and of us for caring and certainly trying.
His 2026 began with a dominant run through the World Baseball Classic, where he allowed just 1 run (a home run to Manny Ramirez’s
son) in 8.2 IP (2 GS). His Spring Training was, perhaps, less successful (7 ER in 9.1 IP, 3 GS), but still showed the dominance that he carried last season when he led the league in strikeouts with 224. He struck out 10 and walked only 1.
But the regular season got off to a rough start when the New York Yankees had a lot of fun humiliating him (6 ER in 5 IP) on Netflix for MLB’s Opening Night special. But after that, he’d have a typical Webb run, posting a 2.64 ERA in his next 85.1 innings (13 starts). But rather critically, the run includes a 15-day IL stint for a knee problem that came after another 6-earned run affair (this one against the Padres in Oracle Park). That prompted me to consider the possibility that his best days were behind him.
In that post — which Webb’s on-field performance almost immediately nuked from orbit with a Pitcher of the Month Award-winning June — I pointed out that this is around the time when the players with as many innings as Webb has to this point in their career either begin to break down due to injuries or are able to stay healthy enough to continue pitching well into their 30s.
This is already his second injury trip when he was known for his durability. And, after that incredible June (0.71 ERA in 38 IP), he’d carry a 5.89 ERA (4.03 FIP) for the rest of the season (13 starts, 70.1 IP). He stacked a lot of “worst start of his career”s this season. That, plus the multiple injuries should be bright red flags going forward.
The blister is interesting, though. As mentioned up top, his sinker use had fallen year over year:
2021 — 37.8%
2022 — 32.2%
2023 — 33.2%
2024 — 39.7%
2025 — 33.6%
2026 — 29.4%
The sinker is a friction-y pitch to be sure and in blisters are a common issue for sinkerballers. There’s also the matter of… maybe the baseballs are the problem? It’s one of the liveliest home run seasons in recent memory, but MLB sees no link between a factory defect in the production of baseballs and this home run environment, according to this piece from July in The Athletic.
Rawlings told MLB in early February that in about 50 percent of baseballs shipped for the 2026 regular season and spring training, “some excess oil from the yarn inside the baseball filtered through the leather cover of the ball, creating some yellow discoloration,” the league said in its statement.
Seems like the stitching is one thing you don’t want to mess with for pitchers, especially sinkerballers.
So, the potential for a wacky baseball, the WBC component, a new pitching coach & staff, and the catcher changeout (though, Webb did blossom in June without Patrick Bailey) all could explain a lot of the lumpy performance around that one great month. But his age and mileage could, too. The knee injury seems like it’s more the result of innings pitched and the knee could also explain the baseball. Everything just being slightly off and the cumulative effect of all these tiny difference being one big turd of a season — for Logan Webb, anyway.
He ends the year 8-9 with a 4.31 ERA (3.45 FIP) in 160.2 innings (his lowest innings total since 2021). He hadn’t won fewer than 10 games in a season since 2020! His 3.1 fWAR is his lowest since 2020, too. It’s still good enough for top 25 in MLB at the moment, though (among qualified starting pitchers — he drops down a bit if you set the minimum to 100 IP). He was about as good as Kevin Gausman and Sandy Alcantara this season, and maybe Sonny Gray, too (3.2 fWAR).
It’s the kind of season that’s almost a bit too outlandish to fear and yet when you write it all down it’s not too surprising. Baseball does this to pitchers all the time. The real trick will be retaining hope that a long offseason and lockout of rest will bring him back to his 2024 & 2025 form for at least the next couple of seasons. He’s the perfect Giant.
