Baseball: Fastball Throws
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Fastball throws are where every young pitcher should start. First you start with just playing catch in the backyard. Then you throw it a little harder, then a little harder still. Maybe Dad buys a catchers mitt. Soon youre throwing the ball as hard as you can, trying to hit spots.
Its a strange but fun obsession. Simply put, youre just throwing a ball. What makes pitching so exciting is that youre doing much more than just throwing a ball. At times it can feel like youre bending the laws of physics. It all starts with fastball throws. Its like the baby of pitches–the pitch youll keep all your life and hopefully improve upon.
Different Fastball Throws
Theres a number of different fastball throws: the cut fastball, the rising fastball (truly against the laws of physics), the four seam, two seam, or split-finger fastball. The trick to every fastball is to be inconspicuous–that is, a hitter will try to tell if its a two-seamer or a four-seamer, but by the time he does, its in the catchers mitt.
A change-up can also fall under the category of fastball throws. The trick is to make it seem like youre putting everything into the throw only to have the pitch trickle in to home plate. What will happen with a change-up is a batter will be swing way out in front of the pitch. Hell be expecting heat and so hell swing early thinking its the same speed.
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Posted on: Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 2:58 pm 
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