Omg. Talk about all my favorite tropes! Fake dating? Check. He falls first? Check. Spicy lessons? Double check. In this romance, pitcher Skylar is in love with her brother’s best friend Madden, who barely seems to notice her. But when hockey player Robbie enters her orbit, Madden seems to start to notice at last. A plan is hatched, to make Madden jealous with fake dating, and before you know it, Robbie the former manwhore catches serious feelings. I tore through this book so fast - the characters and dialogue jump off the page so vividly! I laughed, I got the feels, it was fab. Definitely will be looking for more of this series.

Honestly, this book just wasn't for me. I didn't like the characters, there was too much smut and it was cringy, and just overall not a good read. This is the second book I've read by this author, and I'm beginning to think she just isn't my cup of tea.

I’ll be honest—when I picked up Pitcher Perfect, I was expecting a pretty standard sports romance with the usual tropes and predictable beats. What I got instead was something that genuinely surprised me with how much thought Tessa Bailey put into making both the athletic elements and the romance feel real and engaging. This is the kind of book that works on multiple levels, giving you all the swoony romance you want while actually understanding what it’s like to be a competitive athlete.

Skylar immediately won me over as a protagonist who feels like someone I could actually know. Bailey writes her with the kind of specificity that makes you think she’s spent real time around Division I athletes—the way competition becomes part of your identity, the constant pressure to prove you belong, especially as a woman in sports. Her need to plan and control everything reads as both endearing quirk and totally understandable coping mechanism for someone who’s used to having to fight for respect in every room she enters.

The sports elements are where this book really shines for me. Too often in romance, athletic careers feel like window dressing, but Bailey clearly did her homework here. She gets how being an elite athlete shapes your entire worldview, how the competitive mindset affects relationships, how exhausting it can be to constantly prove yourself. Both Skylar’s softball career and Robbie’s hockey profession feel authentic rather than like generic “hot athlete” stereotypes.

Robbie was a more complicated sell for me initially, and I think Bailey knew she had her work cut out for her turning the classic playboy hockey player into someone genuinely appealing. She mostly succeeds by giving him enough depth and backstory to make his interest in Skylar feel meaningful rather than just physical. His transformation doesn’t feel completely earned given how quickly everything happens, but Bailey provides enough psychological groundwork that I bought into his sincerity.

The fake dating setup actually works really well here, giving both characters a reason to spend time together while exploring how much of relationships is performance anyway. I loved how Bailey uses their pretend relationship to examine authenticity—both in romance and in sports, where you’re constantly performing different versions of yourself for different audiences. The wilderness competition setting adds another fun layer, creating this pressure cooker environment where both characters have to navigate multiple competing identities.

Bailey’s humor is definitely one of her strengths—she has this gift for creating comedy that feels natural to the characters rather than forced. The funniest moments come from Skylar’s methodical approach colliding with Robbie’s more go-with-the-flow personality, and it creates this organic chemistry that actually helps you understand why they work together. Their banter feels like real people who genuinely enjoy each other’s company.

Now, I do have to mention the elephant in the room: the timeline is absolutely bonkers. These two go from fake dating to genuine love in what feels like about a week, maybe two if you’re being generous. Even for romance novel standards, that’s pretty intense. Bailey does enough character work that the attraction feels real, but asking me to believe in forever love after a few days together? That’s a harder sell. It particularly affects the conflict resolution, which happens almost as quickly as the falling in love part.

The supporting characters, especially Skylar’s family, could have used more development. The whole premise of her wanting to make her brother’s best friend jealous never quite lands because we don’t get enough of those family dynamics to understand why it matters so much to her. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it does make some of her motivations feel a bit hollow.

What I really appreciated about Bailey’s writing is how she handles the gender dynamics in athletics without making it feel preachy. She shows rather than tells how exhausting it can be to be a female athlete, how you have to constantly navigate being taken seriously professionally while still being seen as feminine enough to be acceptable. These themes add substance without overwhelming the romance.

The resolution strikes a nice balance between romantic satisfaction and realistic relationship development. Bailey doesn’t pretend that love solves all practical problems, but she shows how two compatible people can work together to figure things out. It partially makes up for how quickly they got to that point in the first place.

The writing itself is Bailey’s usual accessible style, but with enough specificity about athletic culture that it feels informed rather than generic. Her dialogue is particularly strong—she captures the rhythm of athletic banter and competitive trash talk in ways that feel natural to these characters. Nothing feels overly polished or artificial.

For readers who like:
-Sports romance
-Quick, entertaining reads
-Fake dating

Final Verdict
Pitcher Perfect is genuinely fun contemporary romance that succeeds despite some pacing issues. Tessa Bailey has created characters I actually cared about and a relationship that feels worth rooting for, even when the timeline strains believability. It’s the kind of book that reminds me why I love this genre—smart, entertaining, and emotionally satisfying without taking itself too seriously. If you can suspend disbelief about how quickly people can fall in love, you’re in for a really enjoyable read that respects both its characters and its readers.

Grateful to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and Tessa Bailey for the opportunity to read an advance copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Avon Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
This series has been so much fun to read. I love all the different sports and all the connections Bailey is making with the characters. I was truly excited to read Robbie and Skylar's story. And Bailey did not disappoint with their plot and love story!
Robbie Corrigan is such a great character. I wasn't sure how I would feel about him given his status in the other books where he's the "orgasm donor" and all. While he's pegged as a player, you can see deep down it's not truly who he is. He's actually quite the golden retriever in this story. I just want to squish him now that I know him so much better. He's definitely one of those characters whose depth is misunderstood from the quick meetings we've had with him in the past. He's a big teddy bear and just wants to love and be loved but has been so focused on hockey he hasn't given himself the chance to become who he truly is. Skylar rips him right open and reveals his good boy nature. And his nickname for her, ROCKET, I totally love it.
Skylar Paige is one tough cookie. She's focused and knows what she wants. And she wants her brother's best friend, Madden. But in order to make him see her as more than the little sister, she needs someone to show him who she is. And that someone comes in the form of Robbie Corrigan. Her organize everything brain comes up with a plan for lessons on how to win the guy she wants over. So she makes a list of spice lessons and employees Robbie to help her achieve her goals. She hasn't seen Robbie as anything but a player since she met him, but the more time she spends with him, the more she sees the real him and the real him is very tempting. I love how she slowly warms to him and peels back not only his layers, but her own as well.
The fake dating trope is always fun for me. This one came with a bit of the enemies to lovers trope, as well. Bailey infuses a great build of chemistry between Skylar and Robbie. Their relationship is very believable as are the feelings they begin to show for each other. I will say the lead up is very short. So while I do believe in them, I'm not sure their short time together would really build to them being the loves of each other's lives. But that didn't detract from me loving their connection. And the banter! Bailey has a lock on making me laugh, usually out loud.
The plot is typical of a rom-com, nothing new, but still satisfying to read because the journey to get to the HEA was fun. And the pacing is on point. I was definitely invested on seeing where the story went and tore through this in a short time.
Overall I really liked this story. It's not my favorite from this series, that remains Fangirl Down because *SWOON*, but I still was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked Robbie and Skyler together. And Bailey definitely alluded to another story with Madden. I need to see him have his HEA!

Robbie is a professional hockey player and a playboy to match it. He was talking about his last hookup infront of Skylar, who’s a college pitcher. Skylar does everything according to plan. She’s reserved and has been inlove with her brother’s bestfriend, Madden. Robbie is attracted to Skylar and he happens to notice Skylar’s attraction to Madden. Out of nowhere, Robbie offered Skylar to be her fake boyfriend to make Madden jealous. What happens when faking it feels so real?

This is the best Tessa Bailey book I’ve read! The spice is spicin’ 🥵 the fake dating here was fantastic and the dirtyyyy talkkkk oooooooooh weeeee! Highly recommend!!!

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC! 🫶🏻

✨️ ARC REVIEW ✨️

📝 Pitcher Perfect by Tessa Bailey
⭐️ 4/5
🌶 3/5
Pub date: September 9, 2025

This book is a fast, trope-packed sports romance that hooked me right away. Skylar, a softball pitcher who lives for structure, and Robbie, a rookie hockey player who thrives on chaos, are total opposites. She wants to use him to make her brother’s best friend jealous. He just wants her, period.

Their fake dating arrangement is supposed to be all strategy, but the line between fake and real blurs fast. The banter is sharp, the chemistry is undeniable, and Robbie’s pining adds just the right amount of swoon.

I honestly enjoyed this one even more than the last book—such a fun, easy read! Sure, the timeline gets a little tangled, but the energy, humor, and spice more than make up for it.

I'm so glad I got to read it early, because when it comes to Tessa's books, they're always automatic reads for me. It hasn't even released yet and I'm already impatient for the next one.

Thank you Tessa Bailey, NetGalley, and Avon and Harper Voyager for the eARC.

Tessa Bailey delivers another fast-paced, laugh-out-loud, and undeniably spicy sports romance in Pitcher Perfect, the fourth book in her Big Shots series. While technically part of a series, this book stands solidly on its own, though fans will appreciate the setup from the previous installment.

This story centers on pro hockey playboy Robbie Corrigan, whose world is flipped upside down when he meets Skylar Paige, a fierce, no-nonsense college softball pitcher. After a hilarious and snarky meet cute during a pickup baseball game, Skylar has no interest in Robbie’s charm. But when she realizes his interest makes her longtime crush jealous, a plan is born: fake date Robbie to spark jealousy... and maybe get her crush to finally notice her. Of course, things don’t go according to plan.

Their fake relationship kicks off during a family wilderness competition (hello, forced proximity), and what follows is a wildly entertaining mix of banter, spicy “lessons,” and a he-falls-first romance that somehow manages to be sweet, sexy, and surprisingly heartfelt. All the classic Tessa Bailey Hallmarks.

Robbie is all charm and swagger on the outside, but underneath, he’s a cinnamon roll in denial. His character arc, from self-proclaimed douchebag to devoted, emotionally vulnerable man is so well done. He’s the type who will risk everything to be worthy of the one girl who makes him want more. It's all dreamy in the end. And Skylar is a badass, emotionally guarded athlete who slowly lets her walls down in a way that feels honest and earned. She's a fierce heroine who causes Robbie to level up in the best way.

Their chemistry is great. Whether they’re flirting, one upping each other, or quietly admitting feelings, the tension is always simmering. And of course we have some great spice. This isn’t quite enemies-to-lovers (that angle disappears quickly so it felt less enemies than expected), but it is packed with fake dating fun, strong found family energy, and a solid emotional payoff. The side characters shine, the humor mostly hits, and the balance between heart and heat is classic Tessa Bailey.

And like other Tessa books, it feels a bit over the stop in places. A bit of suspending disbelief. But all in all it's loads of fun with plenty of swoony moments and scorching scenes between two competitive, ridiculously hot athletes. So- let's play ball.

Tessa Bailey, I love you forever and always. Literally always love her books, and how much character she puts into each person. Will never stop reading her

Actual rating 3.75⭐

Pitcher Perfect was overall a good story but there were just a few things that were confusing and so it brought my rating down.
I love Skylar but her seemingly lack of self awareness at times was frustrating. She wasn't young enough to be as lacking in self awareness as she was. Many times I was questioning if as a character she was supposed to slightly on the spectrum but it was never something that was said.

I also loved Robbie but it seemed like insta love that also made his entire way of being so a complete 180 in less than a week. It felt like Tessa shoved the growth of Robbie and their relationship as a whole into such a short period of time, a week, and it made the entirety of the growth feel extremely forced.

I really did enjoy the story but these things just made it where I couldn't unconditionally love it.

4 / 5 Stars
This book is super fun and a quick read and works best if you just completely ignore the romantic timeline. Skylar is a D1 softball pitcher at Boston University who loves planners, schedules, and showing dumb dudes that women can be amazing pitchers. Robbie is a professional, rookie hockey player in Boston who loves hooking up, wearing his “orgasm donor” hoodie, and laughing things off. The only thing he can’t laugh off? His instant feelings for Skylar, who wants nothing to do with his philandering ass. Though, on second thought, maybe she can use him to her advantage. Skylar has had feelings for her brother’s best friend for almost a decade and maybe Robbie is the right guy to make him a little jealous so that he’ll finally notice that she is desirable, gosh darn it! A little fake dating mixed with some spicy lessons is all she needs for her plan to work as long as she doesn’t catch feelings for Robbie, who is pining over her every chance he gets. All of that is easier said than done for these two crazy kids when the fake dating doesn’t feel so fake anymore.

You will probably like this book if you like:
🏒 Fake dating
🥎 Reformed playboy
🏒 Hockey player MMC x Softball player FMC
🥎 He falls first and harder
🏒 Spicy lessons
🥎 “Good girl”

Full disclosure, I am an insta-love hater. I do not want it. I do not like it. And yet … I was (mostly) on board with it here. Robbie is instantly attracted to Skylar which, SOUND THE ALARMS, reeks of insta-lust, but I felt like Tessa Bailey did a good job of showcasing lots of other things that he liked about her, so it felt well written. He was smitten with her body AND mind (how novel 🤣). Where we start to get into murkier territory is Robbie and Skylar falling in love with each other over the course of a week. You heard me. A week (maybe two weeks if you count the times they are apart). Robbie and Skylar are faking dating while competing in her family’s yearly wilderness competition which is a Sunday to Thursday affair. And along with competing, Skylar also schedules a spicy lesson for them each day because she isn’t very experienced and wants to be prepared for when she gets down and dirty with her brother’s best friend (which honestly, A+ for bringing some project management skills to learning to make out. Let’s make it efficient and well organized. Snaps to Skylar). A lot happens in those six days but to get to love that fast is a tough sell for me. And their main conflicts occur because they don’t really trust each other … because they don’t know each other … because they have only been together for a week. A few times, it started to feel love bomb-y for me and I am glad they pumped the brakes a bit and got out of that territory. So I think that if you pay too much attention to the timeline or want a book where the two main characters have some general good sense, it may cut into your enjoyment of the book.

But, as a certified insta-love hater, I still really enjoyed the book. Robbie is so exceptionally charming that even I was like “those red flags are basically orange which is basically nothing!” He’s funny, kind, has depth, and a well written back story. Do I wish that he realized that he shouldn’t be such an asshole to women on his own and not because he started to like a woman? Of course. But men can’t perform miracles even in books, apparently 🤣. And Skylar is a girl after my own heart who likes control and doesn’t think she is good enough. I wish she had as rich of a backstory as Robbie but I still really liked her. Skylar and Robbie have great chemistry and the spicy lessons were fun. The competition aspect was a fun way for them to get to know each other though Skylar’s parents are delusional and their only personality traits are that they are Brown alumni. I also loved that they were both athletes who respected and understood each other. There were some really silly and funny moments that had me cackling.

Also note that this is being marketed as an enemies to lovers book and I think they are enemies for maybe a morning? Robbie likes her immediately and she pretty quickly starts to realize that while he is a womanizer, he has a little bit more depth. So if you are looking for enemies to lovers, you won’t really find it here, folks.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for providing the eARC! All opinions are my own.
Publication Date: September 9, 2025

Sometimes you just need a spicy book to forget the dumpster fire that is real life. Tessa Bailey always delivers the best spicy reads. In the fourth book of the Big Shots series, we meet the cocky, good time loving hockey player Robbie. Ever the ladies man, Robbie assumes he will be able to pick up pitcher Skylar after their impromptu baseball game with ease, but boy is he wrong. Skylar might be the first girl who's ever made him work for it. This was a great read for avoiding life.
Thank you NetGalley for the advanced preview.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for allowing me to read an eARC of Pitcher Perfect!

Tessa Bailey never misses with her romance novels - especially her sports romance! Skylar and Robbie were two amazing characters and written in such a great way - they compliment each other perfectly! With nods to hockey, baseball, and softball, this us definitely a sports romance girlie's dream. He falls first but I will say he falls FAST. I love it but also wish it was drawn out a little longer. Nonetheless, a great read!

I think this is my favorite book in the Big Shots series since Fangirl Down tbh!! Robbie is the yearning redheaded hungry giant himbo we deserve. The banter, the spice, the jokes...I loved everything about this book!

This was my first sports romance, and I’m so glad I trusted Tessa Bailey to take me there. Even as part of a series, it worked perfectly as a standalone.
The tropes were some of my favorites—enemies to lovers, fake dating, forced proximity, and of course, plenty of spice in true Tessa Bailey form. What really stood out to me, though, was the chemistry. Robbie had me hooked with his honesty (even under that playboy reputation), and Skylar, while shy and unsure at times, proved she could absolutely hold her own and put him in his place. Their banter made me laugh, their tension kept me engaged, and the romance felt both fun and heartfelt.
A competitive, fast-paced story that left me smiling. I loved it.

Robbie Corrigan is living every rookie’s dream—he’s finally made it to the NHL, shares a place with his best friend and teammate, and has no shortage of attention from the women of Boston. Life couldn’t be better. That is, until he meets Skylar Paige, a Division 1 softball pitcher who has zero tolerance for nonsense and happens to be the only woman immune to his charm. Robbie may be dazzled by her, but Skylar sees him as nothing more than a player and wants nothing to do with him.

When Robbie learns she’s secretly in love with her brother’s best friend, he knows he should let it go. But instead of walking away, he finds himself stepping in—agreeing to be her fake boyfriend and “love coach” at a family wilderness competition in hopes of helping her win over her crush.

What starts as a harmless arrangement quickly turns into something more. With every challenge that forces them to trust and rely on each other, Robbie and Skylar grow closer, and the line between fake and real begins to blur. Soon, the chemistry between them burns hotter than either expected—but pretending is never simple, and some feelings are impossible to ignore.

Let’s talk about the book itself and characters:

Skylar. She is truly the definition of a thought daughter through and through. Constantly having to prove yourself just because you don’t live up to someone’s expectations can really take a toll, and if you’ve ever felt that way, you’ll definitely relate to her character. Her journey felt so familiar, almost as if her struggles were echoing the experiences of people who’ve carried the weight of always needing to be “enough.”

Robbie. A yearner in every sense of the word. And if there’s one thing I’ve learned from reading many of Tessa’s books, it’s that men who yearn eventually earn. Robbie was so down bad for Skylar, and honestly, that’s all I really need to say about him. His devotion and persistence spoke louder than anything else.

Both of their families are really precious to me! It shows that they love both of their families and that they actually look up to them! The bond between both families is great, and that’s something that made the book really good to me.

As for the story itself, it was insta-love/lust right from the start. I wouldn’t say that’s a bad thing—sometimes that immediate pull can be fun—but there were moments where I found myself wishing for a deeper connection between the two. Tessa’s books often lean toward the insta-love/lust side, and I’ve enjoyed them for what they are, but I do think this one could have been even stronger if their bond had been explored in more depth.

One of my favorite aspects, though, was the family dynamic. The connection between Skylar and her half-brother Elton was so tight and heartwarming—it’s not something you get to read about often, and it added such a meaningful layer to the story. It’s always refreshing when sibling bonds are highlighted so beautifully.

Another theme that stood out was trust. This book really emphasizes how important it is to trust your partner, because without it, cracks begin to show in the relationship. It’s simple, but it’s a lesson worth repeating—trust truly makes or breaks everything.

As for the enemies-to-lovers angle, I’d say this one leaned more toward the lovers side than the enemies. I didn’t really feel much of the “enemies” part in their dynamic, but that didn’t take away from the story for me.

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Avon and Harper Voyager, and the author for the ARC in exchange of my honest review.

I love tessa bailey and was beyond excited to read one of my anticipated books of the year, you know Robbie as a fun loving, goofy, rookie, and one half of the Orgasm Donors. Getting to know him on a deeper level was nice, but what was better was seeing this man go from playboy to reformed in an instant, as soon as he meets the pitcher in the infamous hockey vs baseball scene at the end of dream girl drama. if you're not into insta love, don't pick up a tessa bailey book - this book delivers on what tessa bailey does best - humor, forced proximity, dirty talk, possessive boyfriend.

I loved this! It was exactly what I needed: fast=faced, filled with banter, funny, and spicy. I really enjoyed how quickly Robbie realized he liked Skylar and would stop at nothing to be worthy of her. Their fake dating scheme was funny and while "teach me" isn't usually a favorite trope of mine, it fit really well here! Robbie was the perfect person to help Skylar build her confidence and his faith in her was so heartfelt. She really needed a champion to help her see her worth and he did just that!

Love this series. Love this author. Love this book.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for this advanced reader copy. This highly detailed, verbose review is my own.

This book was great! I loved Skylar and Robbie! And I liked that baseball was more minor and it was more about their relationship and getting to know each other. The smut was 10/10! I finished the book in 4 days! I also liked how Tessa wrote about 2 different sports, hockey and baseball. Usually sports romances are just one sport. Also usually I don’t like books in 3rd person but this one was great! I hope madden and eves book is next! Thank you for the ARC!

⭐️ 4 stars

Overall I really enjoyed this book. The characters were love able and the story was easy to follow. The majority of the time I was reading this book, I was laughing and kicking my feet at all the lovable & laugh out loud moments. Oh and the nicknames were some of the most creative ones I’ve seen in a book yet so bravo on that TB!

I absolutely adored the premise of the story. It’s not very often you see a female character in the sports world and while they didn’t get off on the right foot, Robby was the perfect cheerleader partner for Skylar that she didn’t really have growing up.

Robby was promised to be the best MMC of this series so far and OMG was this correct! He stood up for her to her family and fought when she didn’t feel like she could.

The one thing I did not really enjoy was the 3rd person point of view. I really wish it was first person because I feel like it would be easier to connect with the story and the characters.

The storyline also felt a bit rushed. Not by much but when the 2 characters are saying I love you after 1 week of knowing and really falling for each other, there’s not much else to say. It just felt like Robby did a really quick 180 after talking bad about her when they first met.

Really enjoyed this book and love the buildup for the next book! I cannot wait to read it!

Thank you to Harper Voyager & Avon | and to Avon for the ARC via NetGalley