When releasing a 2 seam or sink fastball, there will be less friction between the pitcher’s index and middle finger and the ball when compared to a 4 seamer. This causes the 2 seamer to spin less and helps create extra horizontal movement . Along with the arm slots from which the pitches are thrown, the grips will be the big differentiators between a 4 seam and 2 seam fastball. The low velocity at which Bill threw is unheard of in today’s game.
If you are throwing against aluminum bats you will notice that the pitch often avoids the “sweet spot” of the bat. While some may perceive it to rise, the four-seam fastball is just a straight pitch. It’s a great pitch to use if you are trying to overpower a hitter, or if their swing is slow.
When you pitch to contact that will help your defense make more plays and, ultimately, help you win more ball games. There are so many reasons why I love baseball – I played from a young age through college and it’s my favorite sport to watch so I’ve always followed it very closely. I love it for its little nuances, the strategy 2 seam 4 seam fastball grip involved, the drama of a close game, late innings situation, and its deep history. Throw the ball with great speed and boost it by adding a backspin. According to a study by Bleacher Report, Brandon Woodruff has the ultimate four-seamer in today’s game. I’m sitting here with my 10 year old son chatting baseball.
This can be a very easy pitch to learn because it isn’t thrown much different than the four seam fastball. When a pitcher needs a sure strike, the 4-seam fastball may be the better choice, since it comes right at the hitter, straight from the point of release. The pitcher can rescue a pitcher who is 2-0 or 3-1 in the count. For this reason, a right pitcher can gain a significant advantage over a left-handed batter and a right-handed pitcher over a left-handed batter. However, a successful two-seam fastball is effective nonetheless. There is no uniform timeline on when to teach a pitcher a 2 seam grip; however, when a pitcher seems to have no issues throwing a 4 seam, it might be time to try and teach him a 2 seam.
Furthermore, pitchers with high spin rates on their fastballs should throw 4 seam fastballs because it allows for them to maximize the spin rate. Simply put, spin rate is the number of times the ball spins as it travels through the air. The velocity of this pitch also varies greatly from pitcher to pitcher. At the major collegiate level and higher, two-seam fastballs are typically thrown in the low 90s , but with much variation.
In 2017, we can see that Cole’s fastball was hard – averaging nearly 96 MPH – but it was relatively flat and had a similar movement profile to that of Chris Sale . His spin rate was nothing special and unfortunately, Statcast did not start tracking Active Spin Rate until 2018. All of this resulted in a – rather lacklustre – high 4-Seam fastball swinging strike rate of 13.5%. When talking about spin rate, it is important to know that there are two types of spin. First, there is Active Spin (sometimes referred to as “Transverse Spin”) which is the amount of spin that results in the baseball’s directional movement. The other type is called Inactive Spin (sometimes referred to as “Gyrospin”) which does not impact the trajectory of the ball and works like the spiral of a football or bullet instead.
