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Pitch-By-Pitch Guide

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 22, 2008

Two-Seam Fastball

Hold the index and middle fingers with the seams. How it works: The pitch is thrown with an arm side run, which allows the ball to dip away to left-handed hitters (or right-handed if the pitcher is a lefty) and into a right-handed batter (or into a lefty for a left-handed pitcher).

Four-Seam Fastball

Grip the middle and index fingers across all four seams. How it works: As more of a placement pitch, the four-seam fastball has little movement with a higher velocity; also called a spot-up fastball

Curveball

Grip the middle finger (or power finger) on the top seam and the thumb underneath. How it works: By snapping the middle finger over the top, a get-me-over curveball works in a 12-to-6 motion with a downward rotation on the ball. A strikeout curveball is thrown with harder velocity by the pitcher with the intent of the ball getting as low as possible with a late break.

Slider

Grip the ball off-center against the seams with the middle finger on the seam. How it works: As a power breaking ball, the slider will slide down away from the hitter.

Split-Finger Fastball

Split the index and middle fingers outside of the seams. How it works: A pitcher wants to throw the pitch as hard as possible to give the ball a tumble effect, almost like a curveball, only thrown harder and on a downward plane.

Cut Fastball (Cutter)

Hold the index and middle fingers slightly off-center across the seams. How it works: It acts just like a fastball with a one-to-two-inch late break on the ball.

Slurve

Hold the index and middle fingers off-center across the seams to show a lot of the ball. How it works: The pitch is a cross between a slider and a curveball, with a break somewhere between the two pitches; allows for more control than a curve or slider.

Knuckleball

Although there are different variations on the grip, the basic is to grip the ball with the fingernails, or one fingernail and the top knuckle. How it works: Only a few pitchers in the majors throw the pitch, hence it's often referred to as a gadget pitch that can dance all over the zone and throw a hitter's timing out of whack; not easily controlled by the pitcher.

Change-Up

The most common is the OK change, in which the index finger and thumb slightly touch with the other three fingers on top. Or, with the thumb bend underneath the ball and the other four fingers on top. How it works: It's designed to disrupt a hitter's timing as a deceptive pitch that is disguised to look like a fastball but with significantly less velocity. When used effectively, the pitcher's arm speed remains the same as a fastball, but the ball will run downward off the pitcher's arm side.

Erik Erlendsson

Grips and descriptions courtesy of USF pitching coach Lazer Collazo.

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