'Let it eat': Joyce unleashes historic heater to secure 1st career save

ANAHEIM -- Rookie flamethrower Ben Joyce was one strike away from recording his first career save, but there was one problem. He couldn’t hear what catcher Logan O’Hoppe wanted him to throw via his PitchCom device in his hat because the crowd was too loud at Angel Stadium.

So O’Hoppe jogged out to the mound and told Joyce he wanted him to go with his four-seam fastball against veteran slugger J.D. Martinez in an 0-2 count. Joyce reared back and fired a 104.7 mph heater to strike out Martinez and preserve a 5-4 win over the Mets on Saturday night. It was the fastest pitch thrown by any Major Leaguer this season, topping his 104.5 mph fastball thrown against the Mariners on July 12, and the fastest strikeout pitch since pitch tracking began in 2008. He’s the only pitcher to reach 104 mph this year, and he’s done it three times.

“It was awesome, man,” Joyce said. “It started with [Zach] Neto’s homer. Like you just feel the energy in there, and I just tried to keep it up when I was out there. I felt pretty calm, even though there was definitely a different level of adrenaline. I couldn’t hear the PitchCom because it got too loud, and so it was a different level there. It was an 0-2 pitch, so I just tried to let it eat and it ended up getting a good result.”

Martinez, a 14-year veteran who has long been one of the game's best hitters, was highly complimentary of Joyce after the game. He earlier hit a grand slam in the seventh to give the Mets the lead, only for Neto to hit a go-ahead three-run blast in the bottom of the inning.

"It was hard,” Martinez said. “I've never seen a fastball like that. For me, personally, that was the fastest fastball I've ever faced. He threw it and I laughed after he struck me out, I was kind of smiling like, ‘Woah.' I had to look up at the radar, I was like, ‘That was different.’ Kudos to him, man, he throws hard and goes right at you.”

Angels manager Ron Washington was also impressed by Joyce’s final pitch and the way he’s matured this season. Joyce was called on for a four-out save and delivered to extend his scoreless-innings streak to 22 2/3. He’s added a new splinker to his arsenal and has become unhittable over his last 18 outings to lower his ERA to 1.82 in 24 2/3 innings.

“Wow,” Washington said. “And we needed him to get to 104.7 mph with Martinez up there. Because if it was 98 there, he might’ve caught it. Joyce is gonna be something special. For me, every time you tell him something that educates him, he finds a way to use it.”

Neto was also amazed by Joyce’s incredible velocity and helped him with a great barehanded defensive play for the second out. But even he couldn’t believe what he saw flashing on the radar gun.

“I kind of glanced up there and I saw it but I was like, I don't think I saw it right,” Neto said. “But it was awesome. It’s a memory he'll never forget. Definitely an accomplishment and to be able to play defense behind him, it's unbelievable.”

Joyce is one of four pitchers to hit at least 104.5 mph in the pitch tracking era, along with Aroldis Chapman, Jordan Hicks and Jhoan Duran. The fastest pitch recorded in the pitch-tracking era is Chapman's 105.8 mph in 2010.

Joyce, who kept the ball from his strikeout of Martinez as a keepsake, said he believes he can throw even harder now that he’s getting save opportunities. Veterans Carlos Estévez and Luis García were traded, opening the door for Joyce to close. Joyce, a third-round pick in 2022, hit 105.5 mph while pitching for the University of Tennessee that year.

“Honestly, yeah, I would think so,” said Joyce, whose four-seamer averages 101.8 mph this year. “I think it's a little different level of adrenaline and focus. So I don’t see why not.”