Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 2
Burns, Misiorowski Finally Meet 473 Days Later as 23- and 24-Year-Old Aces Duel
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Jul 2

Burns, Misiorowski Finally Meet 473 Days Later as 23- and 24-Year-Old Aces Duel

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jul 2

Summary

  • Thursday’s Brewers-Reds finale in Milwaukee will deliver the first regular-season head-to-head start between Chase Burns, 23, and Jacob Misiorowski, 24, after a planned 2025 Spring Breakout matchup fell through.
  • 473 days after that missed showcase, both right-handers arrive not as prospects but as second-year frontline starters, now viewed as likely NL All-Stars and Cy Young contenders.
  • 105.5 mph helps define Misiorowski’s edge: he owns the highest average fastball velocity among starters and is the only one to top 103 mph, doing so 63 times.
  • 97.9 mph Burns counters with a fastball only five starters throw harder and a slider generating whiffs on 52% of swings, though Misiorowski’s deeper breaking-ball mix still gives him the broader arsenal.
  • 2025 offered only brief previews against the division rival—Misiorowski was hit hard by Cincinnati, while Burns struck out four Brewers in 1 2/3 relief innings—underscoring how different this first true duel now looks.

Insights

Is Jacob Misiorowski's record-breaking velocity a path to historic greatness or an inevitable career-threatening injury?
As pitchers chase 105 mph and hitters train for elite bat speed, who is winning baseball's high-velocity arms race?