The Different Types of Pitches

Question of the Day: Will Carmelo Anthony's recent string of 40+ point games good enough for the Knicks to make a run in the playoffs?

The other day I got the suggestion of writing about the different forms of pitches a pitcher can throw in his arsenal. I realized that I had been stating different names of pitches in my previous articles thinking that you all would understand it. I apologize for that and I am here to correct my mistake. Here are the types of pitches a baseball pitcher can make, although there are many variations to pitches, these are the 7 that are most popular.

- Four Seam Fastball- The most common pitch in baseball. The four seam fastball is most likely going to be the fastest pitch in a pitcher's arsenal. The four seam is the easiest to pitch because it is thrown right down the middle of the plate.

- Two Seam Fastball- This pitch is a little more advance than the four seam in that it's movement toward the plate. Also associated with a sinker, the two seam fastball is thrown a few miles per hour slower than the four seam fastball because of the way it tightly gripped.

-Cut Fastball (Cutter)- The cutter is one of my favorite pitches because it has the ability to deceive a batter into think that the pitcher has thrown a fastball. Because it is thrown like a four seam fastball, but slightly off the mark, if a player makes contact with the pitch, then odds are it will be a soft ground ball or a pop-up.

-Change Up- The change up is the pitch that fools the most hitters into swinging and missing the ball. It is thrown just like a fastball just a lot slower. The change up is another pitch thrown to deceive batters to swinging earlier because they think it is a four seam fastball.

-Curveball- The curveball is a pitch that pitchers usually through to strike batters out when they have two strikes and less that three balls for the pitch count. The curveball starts high upon release from the hand, and ends up diving downward as it gets to the plate, often the hitter will swing and miss because the break down is so large.

-Slider- Sliders work somewhat like a curveball in that it has a lesser breaker downward but a larger spin when it is released from the pitcher's hand. Sliders are the third fastest pitch in baseball after the two varying fastballs. A slider has a late break allowing for the ball to sneak past the hitter's bat for a called third strike or a swing and a miss.

-Knuckleball- I think the knuckleball is the hardest pitch for a pitcher to master. Only a few have done so in history and it makes sense why. The knuckleball doesn't have much spin to it, but it moves around on it's path to the plate a lot. It is a very unpredictable pitch to catch in that nobody usually knows where it will move.

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