A Beginners Guide to Evaluating Four-Seam Fastballs

This is typically regarded to as the horseshoe seam because when viewed from above, it resembles the horseshoe U-shape. This type of pitch gets its name from the way that you hold the ball. The parallel seams across the baseball are held across 2 fingers under 2 seams lines. The 4 Seam Fastball is probably one of the easiest pitches that you can throw.

Athlete, it is often the case that pitchers are generally unaware of the various grip options available to them. The degree of “four-seam” success depends primarily on the grip and execution of this fastball. Next, place your thumb directly on the bottom side of the baseball and on the smooth leather in between the narrow seams . A variation of the four-seam fastball is the two-seam fastball. Grip this pitch softly, like an egg, in your fingertips. Next, place your thumb directly beneath the baseball, resting on the smooth leather…

Everyone on this list has an above-average fastball movement profile. This makes sense since their high Active Spin rate means that the majority of their fastball spin contributes to movement. This made me wonder whether there is an ideal movement profile that affects high fastball results. The pros and cons of the two-seamer both deal with the movement. It’s a great pitch for you to use if you want to jam or confuse a hitter.

This pitch typically will stay straight depending on your arm angle. Throwing an effective pitch is always a matter of details. Not having a proper grip can mean the difference between a fastball and a foul ball. The knuckleball baseball inside out swing is the slowest pitch, and it’s the most difficult to throw. Because of it’s unpredictable motion, knuckleballs can result in a lot of wild pitches. Historians debate whether Fred Goldsmith or Candy Cummings invented the pitch.

When he threw his 4-Seam fastball high with the same spin rate, he generated a 19.3% swinging strike rate – nearly identical to his 2018 mark in Houston of 19.4%. Maybe there is a connection between his 4-Seam fastball grip and his abnormally high spin rates. In order to find this out, I used Baseball Savant’s 4-Seam Fastball Movement Above Average leaderboard and grouped every pitcher’s 2019 vertical and horizontal movement by intervals. It is also important to note that less vertical drop is considered good for fastballs and is therefore classified as positive vertical movement.

I don’t think too much about following my throw, sometimes when I do that it makes me lose my drive with my back leg and i will have a tendency to throw the ball high to first base. After I field the ball I keep my hand in the glove holding the ball in the middle of my chest, I shuffle in the direction of where I am throwing and then I make the throw. When I do these two things my throws usually are where they need to be.

Essentially, you want to throw the baseball with the most amount of backspin. Your fingers should hold the ball across the seams allowing you to get good spin. Mastering good technique at lower average velocities will help you maintain accuracy, and with time will also make you throw faster and harder. When holding the baseball, don’t smother the ball close to your palm.

Imagine you’re trying to push the ball to the catcher. The delivery and release is just like a two-seam fastball pitch. The ball will start dropping during the last 15 feet in flight. The hand should be higher then and well outside the elbow at release point.

A four-seam grip is a type of baseball grip used when throwing pitches. It is designed to offer the highest potential velocity to a throw and is known for travelling in a straight line longer than other types of throws. 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. Your ring finger should rest on the side of the ball. Place your thumb directly underneath the ball on the smooth leather.