Lastly, pitchers with good 12-6 curveballs typically have success with 4 seam fastballs. When a pitch is thrown with a high spin rate and has straight backspin it gives the hitter the illusion that the ball is rising. At release, the hitter may see a fastball coming in belt high, but when it reaches the plate, they realize it is actually up around his chest. Oftentimes, you’ll hear a 2 seam fastball referred to as a “sink fastball” or “sinker”.
Therefore, players should first be introduced to the basic grips of each primary pitch. Once they have a good feel for the delivery and location of a particular pitch, they can be shown other possible grip options to create more movement on the ball. At that point, they can spend time tweaking their grips and finger placement to determine what works best for them. It is critical that they also continue to polish their fastball and changeup by learning to command them in and out of the strike zone. When a high school pitcher attempts to throw more than three pitches, his primary pitches tend to lose effectiveness, and the pitches all start to look similar to the batter.
This is one of the fastest pitches that a pitcher can throw. Another difference you will notice is that the cutter breaks opposite of the two-seamer. If you are a righty, it will break in on the hands of a lefty – or away from a right-handed hitter. The cutter is a great pitch for you to throw on the outside of the zone against a lefty as it will appear to be a ball, but will break back into the strike zone. Position the ball much in the same way as you would position a two-seam fastball, only now place your middle and index fingers next to the right seam as shown in the picture above.
This is the same pitch as the sinker, but some pitchers have trouble making the ball dive towards the ground. The natural movement makes it easy to get the ball in on the hands, and makes it difficult for the hitter to make solid contact. However, baseball pitching targets a good pitcher can make up for this loss of speed with the movement generated by the pitch. This is why I recommend that you spend a few weeks – preferably during the off-season – working on tucking your index finger into the baseball.
Gripping a two seam fastball is not much different, besides where you hold the ball. There are no fancy flicks to get the ball to move like other types of breaking pitches. If you practice the 2 seam fastball, you’ll know when to throw this type of pitch over a 4 seam. Learning to harness the power of your balls movement is going to be the first step to throwing a good 2 seam pitch. Proper pitching mechanics along with a strong familiarity with your pitching tendencies will lead to a successful 2 seam pitch. Knowing when to throw a proper pitch when the game is on the line is something a pitcher must master.
The baseball should be tucked comfortably against the circle. Proper pitching starts with the right grip on the baseball. Here are some of the most common baseball pitching grips and how I threw them in college and professional baseball. If a pitcher places pressure on the index finger, the ball will run away from right-handed batters from a right-handed pitcher.
As it moves in that direction, it will lose a bit of velocity and move down in the zone. Generally, pitchers will have slightly less control with this pitch because of that movement. As per the hitting legend Ted Williams, the slider is the best pitch in baseball. It is the third-fastest pitch in baseball after four-seam and two-seam fastballs.
Announcers see one pitch and call it one thing where it is often something else. Different pitching coaches even have different names for the same pitches. And if this isn’t enough, different pitches that do the same thing can be thrown different ways with different grips. I am quite sure that I can throw over 120 different variations if I include arm angles different curve grips, different slider grips, different split & forkball grips.
In this article, the writer has and will be using the terms interchangeably. But out in the world of pitching, there will be some who will say the 2 seamer and the sinker are different. Due to slightly alternating grips, arm slots and wrist angles; there will be pitchers who find that they get more drop on this pitch than others.
Do it while you’re watching TV or in study hall at school. Once your index finger is comfortable with the grip, you can progress into spinning a baseball to a partner without any trouble. Our aim is to provide our expertise on everything you need to know when buying baseball & softball equipment. We’ll provide in-depth equipment reviews, new product announcements, useful tips & tricks and a whole lot more. Your thumb should be directly underneath the baseball, not touching any of the seams below. Let the grip and the natural pronation of the hand take care of the pitch.
