Ads
related to: different curveball grips
Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Grip of a curveball. The curve ball is gripped much like a cup or drinking glass is held. The pitcher places the middle finger on and parallel to one of the long seams, and the thumb just behind the seam on the opposite side of the ball such that if looking from the top down, the hand should form a "C shape" with the horseshoe pointing in towards the palm following the contour of the thumb.
The second type of knuckle curve is a breaking ball that is thrown with a grip similar to the knuckleball. Unlike a knuckleball, which spins very little, a knuckle curve spins like a normal curveball because the pitcher's index and middle fingers push the top of the ball into a downward curve at the moment of release.
Historically, the term "knuckle curve" had a usage that was different from what it has in the game today. Many current pitchers throw a curveball using a grip with the index finger touching the ball with the knuckle or fingertip (also called a spike curve). This modern pitch is unrelated to the knuckleball.
He didn't use the curveball in games last season, but in the offseason, he morphed together the slider and curveball grips, creating the new breaking ball. That's averaging 86 mph.
The Sweeper - which picked up 14 whiffs yesterday - has a different release point than the old curveball, gets 10" less drop, less "sweep" (oddly enough) and comes in 3mph faster. pic.twitter.com ...
A common grip of a slider. Well-thrown breaking balls have movement, usually sideways or downward. A ball moves due to the changes in the pressure of the air surrounding the ball as a result of the kind of pitch thrown. Therefore, the ball keeps moving in the path of least resistance, which constantly changes.