Baseball 101: Your Basic Pitch Catalogue
- rukket
- Dec 8, 2014
- 2 min read
Life is full of choices. And when it’s bottom of the ninth, full count, bases loaded, making the right choice is crucial. The more pitches you know, the more dangerous you’ll be to the guy with the bat who wants to go yard on you. Here are the most common pitches you can practice with your Rukket Sock It! Baseball net to round out your repertoire.
Four-Seam Fastball: This pitch is the bread and butter for many pitchers. It is the hardest, fastest pitch and has little to no movement. Done well, it barely even drops, giving the illusion that it is actually rising.
The tips of your index and middle fingers should be placed on the seam with the horseshoe seam’s bend facing the ring finger. The thumb is on smooth leather. Allow a gap between ball and palm and don’t grip this one hard; you want maximum backspin.
Two-Seam Fastball: This is the second fastest throw, just shy of the four-seamer. Instead of fingers running perpendicular, your fingers lay on top of the seams at their most narrow. The thumb, again, is placed on smooth leather underneath, but this time, you’ll grip the ball a little tighter. The added friction will give the ball some movement.
Straight Curveball: Unlike the fastball, where you create backspin, the curveball’s spin is over the top, which gives it the ending drop that confuses batters. Your index and middle fingers are together usually across the seam or straddling a seam, varying from pitcher to pitcher. You’ll twist the ball with the middle finger and thumb on release in a manner that sends the thumb upward and fingers downward.
Changeup: This pitch is another basic one because it is still easy to control and uses the same motion as your fastball. It’s actually your fake fastball, in that the batter should think you’re throwing hard when you’re actually taking steps to take speed off. With the three-finger
changeup, you spread the index, middle, and ring fingers over the top of the ball with pinky and thumb touching underneath. Nestling the ball into your palm will create more friction, helping top slow the ball. Another version has middle, ring, and pinky fingers spread over the top with the index and thumb making the “OK” symbol on the side of the ball. Shortening your stride will also reduce the speed a bit.
Slider: This is your third fastest pitch. It is gripped like a two-seam fastball but held slightly off center. The way you make it slightly off balance is to manipulate the ball so that it comes off the thumb-side of your index finger, instead of the index and middle finger simultaneously. Cocking your wrist and keeping it loose will give you the snap you need, and if held correctly, this pitch will work itself out. Ted Williams claimed that the slider was the best pitch in baseball!
Head to Rukket.com today to pick up the popular Sock It! Baseball net!
Comments