Misplaced Pages

#930069

86-631: As coach John Franklin " Johnny " Sain (September 25, 1917 – November 7, 2006) was an American right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball who was best known for teaming with left-hander Warren Spahn on the Boston Braves teams from 1946 to 1951. He was the runner-up for the National League 's Most Valuable Player Award in the Braves' pennant-winning season of 1948, after leading

172-408: A ball when no part of the ball passes through the strike zone. A check swing is when the batter begins to swing, but then stops the swing short. If the batter successfully checks the swing and the pitch is out of the strike zone, it is called a ball. There are two legal pitching positions , the windup and the set position or stretch . Either position may be used at any time; typically, the windup

258-481: A speed over 100 miles per hour (160 km/h; 150 ft/s), ex., Aroldis Chapman . Other common types of pitches are the curveball , slider , changeup , cutter , sinker , screwball , forkball , split-fingered fastball , slurve , knuckleball , and vulcan . These generally are intended to have unusual movement or to deceive the batter as to the rotation or velocity of the ball, making it more difficult to hit. Few pitchers throw all these pitches, but most use

344-538: A .245 batting average with 69 runs , 3 home runs and 101 RBI . After retiring as a player, Sain spent many years as a well-regarded and outspoken pitching coach for the Oakland Athletics , New York Yankees , Minnesota Twins , Detroit Tigers , Chicago White Sox and Atlanta Braves . During the 1960s, Sain coached the pitchers of five of the American League 's ten pennant-winning teams. While serving as

430-528: A 16–1 loss against the Boston Red Sox in the 2018 American League Division Series . The only regulation game in which both pitchers of record were position players occurred on May 6, 2012, when the Baltimore Orioles' designated hitter Chris Davis was the winner in a 16-inning game against Boston while Red Sox outfielder Darnell McDonald took the loss. The pitcher's duty does not cease after he pitches

516-439: A barbell. The emphasis on the workout should be on the legs and the core. Other body parts should be worked on but using lighter weights. Over lifting muscles, especially while throwing usually ends up in a strain muscle or possibly a tear. Other than the catcher, pitchers and other fielders wear very few pieces of equipment. In general the ball cap, baseball glove and cleats are equipment used. Pitchers may also keep with them at

602-492: A boy pitcher mastered the curveball to defeat the opposing batters. The New York Clipper reported, of a September 26, 1863, game at Princeton University (then the College of New Jersey), that F. P. Henry's "slow pitching with a great twist to the ball achieved a victory over fast pitching." However, Katz, in his biography of Cummings, explains that Henry was not actually pitching curveballs. Harvard president Charles Eliot

688-523: A catcher for their team. The pitcher catcher combination results in many throws and may increase the risk of injury. 8) If a pitcher complains of pain in their elbow, get an evaluation from a sports medicine physician. 9) Inspire youth to have fun playing baseball and other sports. Participation and enjoyment of various activities will increase the youth's athleticism and interest in sports. To counteract shoulder and elbow injury, coaches and trainers have begun utilizing "jobe" exercises, named for Frank Jobe ,

774-405: A complete game 14-inning win in the opener, and Sain pitching a shutout in the second game. Following two off days, it did rain. Spahn won the next day, and Sain won the day after that. Three days later, Spahn won again. Sain won the next day. After one more off day, the two pitchers were brought back, and won another doubleheader. The two pitchers had gone 8–0 in twelve days' time. That year,

860-425: A curveball is entirely different from that of most other pitches. The pitcher at the top of the throwing arc will snap the arm and wrist in a downward motion. The ball first leaves contact with the thumb and tumbles over the index finger thus imparting the forward or "top-spin" characteristic of a curveball. The result is the exact opposite pitch of the four-seam fastball 's backspin, but with all four seams rotating in

946-428: A curveball" essentially translates to introducing a significant deviation to a preceding concept. 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

SECTION 10

#1733094238931

1032-433: A defensive play. At that point, the pitcher has several standard roles. The pitcher must attempt to field any balls coming up the middle, and in fact a Gold Glove Award is reserved for the pitcher with the best fielding ability. He must head over to first base , to be available to cover it, on balls hit to the right side, since the first baseman might be fielding them too far to the baseman's right to reach first base before

1118-567: A forfeit (the latter typically only happens in extra-inning games). Cliff Pennington of the Toronto Blue Jays , who pitched 1 ⁄ 3 of an inning in game 4 of the 2015 American League Championship Series en route to a 14–2 loss, was the only documented position player to pitch during the postseason , until Austin Romine of the New York Yankees pitched the ninth inning of Game 3 in

1204-402: A game is centered on the pitcher for the defensive team. A pitcher's particular style, time taken between pitches, and skill heavily influence the dynamics of the game and can often determine the victor. Starting with the pivot foot on the pitcher's rubber at the center of the pitcher's mound, which is 60 feet 6 inches (18.44 m) from home plate , the pitcher throws the baseball to

1290-519: A game. Both Allen, and teammate pitcher John P. Barden, became famous for employing the curve in the late 1870s. In the early 1880s, Clinton Scollard (1860–1932), a pitcher from Hamilton College in New York, became famous for his curve ball and later earned fame as a prolific American poet. In 1885, St. Nicholas , a children's magazine , featured a story entitled, "How Science Won the Game". It told of how

1376-432: A number of variations on this basic premise: "Stand behind a tree 60 feet away, and I will whomp you with an optical illusion!" However, optical illusion caused by the ball's spinning may play an important part in what makes curveballs difficult to hit. The curveball's trajectory is smooth, but the batter perceives a sudden, dramatic change in the ball's direction. When an object that is spinning and moving through space

1462-407: A pitcher having an arm angle that is either side arm or at a very low 3/4 arm angle. However, sometimes complete side spin happens for a pitcher who has a higher arm slot due to the person throwing the pitch with a twisting motion causing the fingers to move around the side of the ball instead of over the top of the ball. Using this twisting motion around the ball is said to cause injury to the arm near

1548-406: A pitcher is left-handed or right-handed, respectively. In Major League Baseball , baseball rubbing mud is used to condition game balls before pitchers use them. A skilled pitcher often throws various pitches to prevent the batter from hitting the ball well. The most basic pitch is a fastball , where the pitcher throws the ball as hard as possible. Some pitchers are able to throw a fastball at

1634-466: A result of a pinch hitter being used in the late innings of a game, especially if the pitcher is in the batting lineup due to not having the designated hitter. A reliever would then come out of the bullpen to pitch the next inning. When making a pitching change a manager will come out to the mound. He will then call in a pitcher by the tap of the arm which the next pitcher throws with. The manager or pitching coach may also come out to discuss strategy with

1720-470: A result, the pitcher who starts a game often will not be the one who finishes it, and he may not be recovered enough to pitch again for a few days. The act of throwing a baseball at high speed is very unnatural to the body and somewhat damaging to human muscles; thus pitchers are very susceptible to injuries, soreness, and general pain. Baseball teams use two strategies to address this problem: rotation and specialization. To accommodate playing nearly every day,

1806-423: A subset or blend of the basic types. Some pitchers release pitches from different arm angles, making it harder for the batter to pick up the ball's flight. (See List of baseball pitches .) A pitcher throwing well on a particular day is said to have brought his "good stuff." Pitchers use several distinct throwing styles. The most common style is a three-quarters delivery in which the pitcher's arm snaps downward with

SECTION 20

#1733094238931

1892-417: A team will include a group of pitchers who start games and rotate between them, allowing each pitcher to rest for a few days between starts. A team's roster of starting pitchers are usually not even in terms of skill. Exceptional pitchers are highly sought after and in the professional ranks draw large salaries, thus teams can seldom stock each slot in the rotation with top-quality pitchers. The best starter in

1978-457: A vertical axis completely perpendicular to its flight path and thus with complete side spin that is either 3–9 for a right handed pitcher or 9–3 for a left handed pitcher is called a sweeping curveball, flat curveball, or frisbee curveball. The flat curveball will still drop because of gravity, but due to the lack of top spin the drop is only a small amount compared to the 12–6, 1–7/11–5, or 2–8/10–4 curveballs. Most often this side spin happens due to

2064-746: A young age, a practice that has been criticized by many coaches and doctors, with some citing an increase in Tommy John surgeries in recent years. Fleisig lists nine recommendations for preventative care of children's arms. 1) Watch and respond to signs of fatigue. 2) Youth pitchers should not pitch competitively in more than 8 months in any 12-month period. 3) Follow limits for pitch counts and days of rest. 4) Youth pitchers should avoid pitching on multiple teams with overlapping seasons. 5) Youth pitchers should learn good throwing mechanics as soon as possible: basic throwing, fastball pitching and change-up pitching. 6) Avoid using radar guns. 7) A pitcher should not also be

2150-457: Is a throw from the outfield to third base, he has to back up the play to third base as well. The physical act of overhand pitching is complex and unnatural to the human anatomy. Most major league pitchers throw at speeds of 70 to 100 mph (110 to 160 km/h), putting high amounts of stress on the pitching arm. Pitchers are by far the most frequently injured players and many professional pitchers will have multiple surgeries to repair damage in

2236-421: Is partially counteracted as the ball rides on and into increased pressure. Thus the fastball falls less than a ball thrown without spin (neglecting knuckleball effects) during the 60 feet 6 inches it travels to home plate. On the other hand, a curveball, thrown with topspin , creates a higher pressure zone on top of the ball, which deflects the ball downward in flight. Instead of counteracting gravity,

2322-405: Is rare as these players are not truly trained as pitchers and risk injury. (For instance, in a 1993 game, Jose Canseco suffered a season ending arm injury after pitching 2 innings.) Plus, they tend to throw with less velocity and skill. For these reasons, managers will typically only use a position player as a pitcher in a blowout loss, or if they have run out of available pitchers in order to avoid

2408-415: Is the predisposing factor. In theory, allowing time for the cartilage and tendons of the arm to fully develop would protect against injuries. While acquisition of proper form might be protective, physician James Andrews is quoted in the article as stating that in many children, insufficient neuromuscular control, lack of proper mechanics, and fatigue make maintenance of proper form unlikely. The parts of

2494-478: Is used when the bases are empty, while the set position is used when at least one runner is on base. Each position has certain procedures that must be followed. A balk can be called on a pitcher from either position. A power pitcher is one who relies on the velocity of his pitches to succeed. Generally, power pitchers record a high percentage of strikeouts . A control pitcher succeeds by throwing accurate pitches and thus records few walks. Nearly all action during

2580-449: Is viewed directly, the overall motion is interpreted correctly by the brain. However, as it enters the peripheral vision, the internal spinning motion distorts how the overall motion is perceived. A curveball's trajectory begins in the center of the batter's vision, but overlaps with peripheral vision as it approaches the plate, which may explain the suddenness of the break perceived by the batter. A peer-reviewed article on this hypothesis

2666-425: Is with regard for the safety of the pitcher – not because of its difficulty – though the pitch is widely considered difficult to learn as it requires some degree of mastery and the ability to pinpoint the thrown ball's location. There is generally a greater chance of throwing wild pitches when throwing the curveball. When thrown correctly, it could have a break from seven to as much as 20 inches in comparison to

Johnny Sain - Misplaced Pages Continue

2752-544: The Boston Braves , before being traded to the New York Yankees during the 1951 season for Lew Burdette and cash. Sain had the distinction of being the first pitcher in the Major Leagues to face Jackie Robinson . In 1943, while participating in a benefit game for the Red Cross , Sain became the last man to pitch against Babe Ruth in organized baseball. In 1948, Sain won 24 games against 15 losses and finished second in

2838-455: The Brooklyn Eagle was likely fabricated. Other claimants to invention of the curveball are shown by Katz to have gotten the curveball only after Cummings, or not to have been pitching curveballs. In 1876, the first known collegiate baseball player to perfect the curveball was Clarence Emir Allen of Western Reserve College, now known as Case Western Reserve University , where he never lost

2924-449: The Magnus effect describes the laws of physics that make a curveball curve. A fastball travels through the air with backspin, which creates a higher pressure zone in the air ahead of and under the baseball. The baseball's raised seams augment the ball's ability to develop a boundary layer and therefore a greater differential of pressure between the upper and lower zones. The effect of gravity

3010-782: The National League in wins , complete games and innings pitched . He later became further well known as one of the top pitching coaches in the majors. Beginning in late 1942, Sain served in the United States Navy during World War II . As a navy pilot, he spent the next three years stateside, while also playing baseball on the navy bases. He was discharged in November 1945. Born in Havana, Arkansas , Sain pitched for 11 years, winning 139 games and losing 116 in his career and compiled an earned run average of 3.49. His best years were those immediately after World War II, when he won 100 games for

3096-402: The batter to hit the ball with the bat. A successful pitch is delivered in such a way that the batter either allows the pitch to pass through the strike zone , swings the bat at the ball and misses it, or hits the ball poorly (resulting in a pop fly or ground out). If the batter elects not to swing at the pitch, it is called a strike if any part of the ball passes through the strike zone and

3182-425: The catcher , who is positioned behind home plate and catches the ball. Meanwhile, a batter stands in the batter's box at one side of the plate, and attempts to bat the ball safely into fair play. The type and sequence of pitches chosen depend upon the particular situation in a game. Because pitchers and catchers must coordinate each pitch, a system of hand signals is used by the catcher to communicate choices to

3268-406: The pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter , who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk . In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the pitcher is assigned the number 1. The pitcher is often considered the most important player on

3354-563: The 1969 Tigers in order to have yet another opportunity to benefit from Sain's coaching. Sain and Bouton were briefly reunited in the Atlanta Braves system in 1978. Ned Garver said Sain was the best pitching coach he ever encountered. "If he had an idea that he thought could be of value to you, he would tell you about it to try to help you, but by the time he finished visiting with you about it, you would think that you'd thought of it yourself," Garver described Sain's approach. Tommy John , on

3440-559: The 4th or 5th starter. Typically, the further down in the rotation a starting pitcher is, the weaker he is compared with the others on the staff. The "5th starter" is seen as the cut-off between the starting staff and the bullpen . A team may have a designated 5th starter, sometimes known as a spot starter or that role may shift cycle to cycle between members of the bullpen or Triple-A starters. Differences in rotation setup could also have tactical considerations as well, such as alternating right- or left-handed pitchers, in order to throw off

3526-581: The Boston Braves won their second, latter National League pennant of the post-1901 era, but fell in six games to the Cleveland Indians in the 1948 World Series . Sain won the first game of the Series, a 1–0 shutout at Braves Field that included a memorable play in which Boston catcher Phil Masi was called safe after an apparent pickoff at second base. Masi went on to score the game's only run. With

Johnny Sain - Misplaced Pages Continue

3612-502: The Twins and Mayo Smith of the Tigers—when he disagreed with them. In each case, Sain was fired, but the manager's dismissal soon followed when his pitching staff suffered from Sain's absence. Sain did not make friends among owners and general managers , either, when he would advise pitchers to "climb those golden stairs" to their teams' front offices to demand more money in salary talks. Sain

3698-646: The Yankees pitching coach, Sain picked up an apple one day and poked a broken car antenna through it. Spinning the apple, Sain came to the idea that he could do the same with a baseball by inserting a wooden rod into it, enabling him to spin the ball differently, imitating the spins used for different pitches. Sain eventually patented the idea and sold his product from his home in Arkansas. An independent thinker among coaches, Sain tended to be admired by his pitchers, although he battled with at least two of his managers— Sam Mele of

3784-580: The Yankees, Sain became a relief pitcher and enjoyed late-career success, leading the American League in saves with 22 in 1954. He finished his career in 1955 with the Kansas City Athletics . When Sain was pitching, he thought that merely throwing the ball was not enough to get the ball to vary its course as it travelled to home plate. In order to throw a pitch such as a curveball or a screwball , he had to snap his wrist. A very good hitting pitcher in his 11 year major league career, Sain posted

3870-414: The arm most commonly injured by the curveball are the ligaments in the elbow, the biceps , and the forearm muscles. Major elbow injury requires repair through elbow ligament reconstruction, or Tommy John surgery . Curveballs have a variety of trajectories and breaks among pitchers. This chiefly has to do with the arm slot and release point of a given pitcher, which is in turn governed by how comfortable

3956-435: The arm slot at an angle will throw a curveball that breaks down and toward the pitcher's off-hand. In the most extreme cases, the curve will break very wide laterally. Because the slider and the curveball share nearly the same grip and have the same unique throwing motions, this curveball breaks much like a slider, and is colloquially termed a " slurve ". The axis of rotation on a slurve will still be more or less perpendicular to

4042-444: The ball's release. Some pitchers use a sidearm delivery in which the arm arcs laterally to the torso. Some pitchers use a submarine style in which the pitcher's body tilts sharply downward on delivery, creating an exaggerated sidearm motion in which the pitcher's knuckles come very close to the mound. Effective pitching is vitally important in baseball. In baseball statistics , for each game, one pitcher will be credited with winning

4128-423: The ball. Unlike the other fielders, a pitcher and catcher must start every play in a designated area. The pitcher must be on the pitcher's mound , with one foot in contact with the pitcher's rubber , and the catcher must be behind home plate in the catcher's box . Once the ball is in play, however, the pitcher and catcher, like the other fielders, can respond to any part of the field necessary to make or assist in

4214-417: The batter-runner can. Except for the first baseman, the pitcher ordinarily has the shortest run to first base of anyone, and is the second-most-likely person to make a putout at first base by retrieving a fielded ball thrown by an infielder (typically a first baseman). On passed balls and wild pitches , he covers home-plate when there are runners on. Also, he generally backs up throws to home plate. When there

4300-464: The best advantage in knocking it, now uses every effort to deceive him by curving—I think that is the word—the ball. And this is looked upon as the last triumph of athletic science and skill. I tell you it is time to call halt! when the boasted progress in athletics is in the direction of fraud and deceit." In the past, major league pitchers Tommy Bridges , Bob Feller , Virgil Trucks , Herb Score , Camilo Pascual , Sandy Koufax , Bert Blyleven , and

4386-443: The curveball adds additional downward force, thereby giving the ball an exaggerated drop in flight. There was once a debate on whether a curveball actually curves or is an optical illusion . In 1949, Ralph B. Lightfoot, an aeronautical engineer at Sikorsky Aircraft , used wind tunnel tests to prove that a curveball curves. On whether a curveball is caused by an illusion, Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher Dizzy Dean has been quoted in

SECTION 50

#1733094238931

4472-610: The curveball. One was Fred Goldsmith. Goldsmith maintained that he gave a demonstration of the pitch on August 16, 1870, at the Capitoline Grounds in Brooklyn , New York , and that renowned sportswriter Henry Chadwick had covered it in the Brooklyn Eagle on August 17, 1870. However, Stephen Katz, in his biography of Cummings, shows that Goldsmith's claim was not credible, and that Goldsmith's reference to an article by Chadwick in

4558-414: The defensive side of the game, and as such is situated at the right end of the defensive spectrum . There are many different types of pitchers, such as the starting pitcher , relief pitcher , middle reliever , lefty specialist , setup man , and the closer . Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s,

4644-423: The direction of the flight path with forward-spin, with the axis of rotation perpendicular to the intended flight path, much like a reel mower or a bowling ball . The amount of break on the ball depends on how hard the pitcher can snap the throw off, or how much forward spin can be put on the ball. The harder the snap, the more the pitch will break. Curveballs primarily break downwards, but can also break toward

4730-407: The elbow and shoulder by the end of their careers. As such, the biomechanics of pitching are closely studied and taught by coaches at all levels and are an important field in sports medicine . Glenn Fleisig, a biomechanist who specializes in the analysis of baseball movements, says that pitching is "the most violent human motion ever measured." He claims that the pelvis can rotate at 515–667°/sec,

4816-416: The elbow. A slider's spin axis is almost parallel to the ball's flight path similar to a football or bullet, but tilted slightly upwards pointing to 12 o'clock. When a slider's spin axis points to 1 o'clock or 2 o'clock, then the pitch becomes a slurve. This slurve tends to happen when a pitcher uses too much force on the curveball and less finesse. This happens because the pitcher may lazily pronate slightly at

4902-428: The flight path of the ball; unlike on a 12–6 curve, however, the axis of rotation will not be parallel to the level ground. With some pitchers, the difference between curveball and other pitches such as slider and slurve may be difficult to detect or even describe. A less common term for this type of curveball is a 1–7 (outdrop, outcurve, dropping roundhouse) or 2–8 (sweeping roundhouse curveball). A curveball spinning on

4988-421: The game, and he may be followed by various relief pitchers , such as the long reliever , the left-handed specialist , the middle reliever , the setup man , and/or the closer . In abbreviating baseball positions, P is used as a general designation for pitchers. SP and RP are sometimes used to differentiate starting and relief pitchers, respectively, while LHP and RHP are sometimes used to indicate if

5074-421: The game, and one pitcher will be charged with losing it. These are not necessarily the starting pitchers for each team; however, a reliever can win, and the starter would then get a no-decision. Pitching is physically demanding, especially if the pitcher is throwing with maximum effort. A full game usually involves 120–170 pitches thrown by each team, and most pitchers begin to tire before they reach this point. As

5160-485: The hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over to the position of designated hitter , a cause of some controversy. The National League adopted the designated hitter in 2022; as of 2024, the Japanese Central League is the highest level of competition to not use the designated hitter position. In most cases, the objective of the pitcher is to deliver the pitch to the catcher without allowing

5246-465: The major collegiate level and above will average between 65 and 80 mph, with the average MLB curve at 77 mph. From a hitter's perspective, the curveball will start in one location (usually high or at the top of the strike zone) and then dive rapidly as it approaches the plate. The most effective curveballs will start breaking at the apex of the arc of the ball flight, and continue to break more and more rapidly as they approach and cross through

SECTION 60

#1733094238931

5332-465: The mound a bag of powdered rosin . Handling the bag applies a small layer of the rosin to the pitcher's fingers in order to increase his grip on the ball. Currently there is a new trend of introducing a pitcher helmet to provide head protection from batters hitting line drives back to the pitcher. As of January 2014 , MLB approved a protective pitchers cap which can be worn by any pitcher if they choose. San Diego Padres relief pitcher, Alex Torres

5418-411: The need for several days of rest between appearances. Relief pitchers are typically pitchers with "special stuff", meaning that they have very effective pitches or a very different style of delivery. This makes the batter see a very different way of pitching in attempt to get them out. One example is a sidearm or submarine pitcher. Position players are eligible to pitch in a game as well, this however

5504-590: The original doggerel appeared in Hern's column on September 14, 1948: First we'll use Spahn then we'll use Sain Then an off day followed by rain Back will come Spahn followed by Sain And followed we hope by two days of rain. The poem was inspired by the performance of Sain and Spahn during the Braves' 1948 pennant drive. The team swept a Labor Day doubleheader , with Spahn throwing

5590-554: The other hand, had trouble working with Sain, who kept trying to get the pitcher to throw a slider, a pitch which always gave John trouble. "Sain could show you how to throw any pitch in the book, but he couldn't look at your motion and tell if your mechanics were off," recalled John. "For a sinkerballer [which John was], that spells trouble." Pitchers who won 20 or more games under Sain's coaching include Jim Kaat , Whitey Ford , Mudcat Grant , Denny McLain , Jim Bouton , Al Downing , Jim Perry , Wilbur Wood , and Stan Bahnsen . Sain

5676-408: The other team's hitting game-to-game in a series. Teams have additional pitchers reserved to replace that game's starting pitcher if he tires or proves ineffective. These players are called relief pitchers , relievers , or collectively the bullpen . Once a starter begins to tire or is starting to give up hits and runs a call is made to the bullpen to have a reliever start to warm up. This involves

5762-454: The palm following the contour of the thumb. The index finger is placed alongside the middle finger, and the other two extraneous fingers are folded in towards the palm with the knuckle of the ring finger touching the leather. Occasionally some pitchers will flare out these two fingers straight and away from the ball to keep them clear of the throwing motion. The curveball and slider share nearly identical grips and throwing motion. The delivery of

5848-654: The pioneer of the Tommy John procedure. Jobes are exercises that have been developed to isolate, strengthen and stabilize the rotator cuff muscles. Jobes can be done using either resistance bands or lightweight dumbbells. Common jobe exercises include shoulder external rotation, shoulder flexion, horizontal abduction, prone abduction and scaption (at 45°, 90° and inverse 45°). In addition to the Jobes exercises, many pitching coaches are creating lifting routines that are specialized for pitchers. Pitchers should avoid exercises that deal with

5934-488: The pitcher is throwing the overhand curveball. Pitchers who can throw a curveball completely overhanded with the arm slot more or less vertical will have a curveball that will break straight downwards. This is called a 12–6 curveball as the break of the pitch is on a straight path downwards like the hands of a clock at 12 and 6. The axis of rotation of a 12–6 curve is parallel with the level ground and perpendicular to its flight path. Pitchers throwing their curveballs with

6020-428: The pitcher's off hand to varying degrees. Unlike the fastball, the apex of the ball's flight path arc does not necessarily need to occur at the pitcher's release point, and often peaks shortly afterwards. Curveballs are thrown with considerably less velocity than fastballs, because of both the unnatural delivery of the ball and the general rule that pitches thrown with less velocity will break more. A typical curveball in

6106-409: The pitcher, but on his second trip to the mound with the same pitcher in the same inning, the pitcher has to come out. It is considered proper etiquette for the pitcher to wait on the mound until the manager arrives, whereby he then hands the manager the ball, and only then he is allowed to leave the field. Relief pitchers often have even more specialized roles, and the particular reliever used depends on

6192-461: The pitcher, who either vetoes or accepts by shaking his head or nodding. The relationship between pitcher and catcher is so important that some teams select the starting catcher for a particular game based on the starting pitcher. Together, the pitcher and catcher are known as the battery . Although the object and mechanics of pitching remain the same, pitchers may be classified according to their roles and effectiveness. The starting pitcher begins

6278-413: The release point instead of following through with complete supination at the end of the throw for the curve. At other times the slurve will happen due to the pitcher supinating a little too much at the release point when throwing a slider, which may be called a slurvy slider. A slurvy slider with the same velocity of a power slider (5–8 mph slower than a fastball) may impart a greater break. Generally

6364-414: The reliever starting to throw practice balls to a coach in the bullpen so as to be ready to come in and pitch whenever the manager wishes to pull the current pitcher. Having a reliever warm up does not always mean he will be used; the current pitcher may regain his composure and retire the side, or the manager may choose to go with another reliever if strategy dictates. Commonly, pitching changes will occur as

6450-461: The same pitcher's fastball. Due to the unnatural motion required to throw it, the curveball is considered a more advanced pitch and poses inherent risk of injury to a pitcher's elbow and shoulder. There has been a controversy, as reported in The New York Times , March 12, 2012, about whether curveballs alone are responsible for injuries in young pitchers or whether the number of pitches thrown

6536-600: The situation. Many teams designate one pitcher as the closer , a relief pitcher specifically reserved to pitch the final inning or innings of a game when his team has a narrow lead, in order to preserve the victory. More recently, teams began experimenting with an opener , a relief pitcher who starts a game but only pitches at least the first inning. Other relief roles include set-up men , middle relievers , left-handed specialists , and long relievers . Generally, relievers pitch fewer innings and throw fewer pitches than starters, but they can usually pitch more frequently without

6622-482: The strike zone. A curveball that a pitcher fails to put enough spin on will not break much and is colloquially called a "hanging curve". Hanging curves are usually disastrous for a pitcher because the low velocity, non-breaking pitch arrives high in the zone where hitters can wait on it and drive it for power. The curveball is a popular and effective pitch in professional baseball, but it is not particularly widespread in leagues with players younger than college level. This

6708-434: The team's rotation is called the ace . He is usually followed in the rotation by 3 or 4 other starters before he would be due to pitch again. Barring injury or exceptional circumstances, the ace is usually the pitcher that starts on Opening Day. Aces are also preferred to start crucial games late in the season and in the playoffs; sometimes they are asked to pitch on shorter rest if the team feels he would be more effective than

6794-1053: The trunk can rotate at 1,068–1,224°/s, the elbow can reach a maximal angular velocity of 2,200–2,700°/s and the force pulling the pitcher's throwing arm away from the shoulder at ball release is approximately 280 pounds-force (1,200  N ). The overhead throwing motion can be divided into phases which include windup, early cocking, late cocking, early acceleration, late acceleration, deceleration, and follow-through. Training for pitchers often includes targeting one or several of these phases. Biomechanical evaluations are sometimes done on individual pitchers to help determine points of inefficiency. Mechanical measurements that are assessed include, but are not limited to, foot position at stride foot contact (SFC), elbow flexion during arm cocking and acceleration phases, maximal external rotation during arm cocking, horizontal abduction at SFC, arm abduction, lead knee position during arm cocking, trunk tilt, peak angular velocity of throwing arm and angle of wrist. Some players begin intense mechanical training at

6880-692: The voting for the Most Valuable Player Award behind the St. Louis Cardinals ' Stan Musial , who had won two legs of the Triple Crown . Sain and teammate Spahn achieved joint immortality that year when their feats were the subject of sports editor Gerald V. Hern's poem in the Boston Post which was eventually shortened to the epigram " Spahn and Sain and Pray for Rain " According to the Baseball Almanac ,

6966-439: Was also well known for ignoring running drills most pitchers despised. He frequently told pitchers and managers "You don't run the damn ball across the plate. If running did it, they'd look for pitchers on track teams." Jim Bouton , in his book Ball Four , expressed unreserved admiration for Sain, who had been his pitching tutor in New York during his first two Major League seasons, 1962 and 1963. Bouton openly wished to pitch for

7052-483: Was among those opposed to the curve, claiming it was a dishonest practice unworthy of Harvard students. At an athletics conference at Yale University in 1884 a speaker (thought to be from Harvard, likely Charles Eliot Norton, a cousin of the Harvard president ) was reported to have stated: "For the pitcher, instead of delivering the ball to the batter in an honest, straightforward way, that the latter may exert his strength to

7138-536: Was married twice. His first wife was Doris May McBride of Dallas. They were married on October 1, 1945 and had four children: John Jr., Sharyl, Ronda and Randy. The couple divorced in 1970. Sain's second wife was Mary Ann Zaremba, whom he married on August 24, 1972. They had no children together. Sain was disabled by a stroke in 2002. He died at age 89 in Downers Grove, Illinois . At the time of his death, Sain had 11 grandchildren. Pitcher In baseball ,

7224-406: Was published in 2010. Popular nicknames for the curveball include "the bender" and "the hook" (both describing the trajectory of the pitch), as well as "the yakker" and "Uncle Charlie". New York Mets pitcher Dwight Gooden threw a curve so deadly that it was nicknamed "Lord Charles" and the great hitter Bill Madlock called it "the yellow hammer”—apparently because it came down like a hammer and

7310-456: Was the first player in MLB to wear the protective cap. One style of helmet is worn on top of the ballcap to provide protection to the forehead and sides. In softball , a full face helmet is available to all players including pitchers. These fielder's masks are becoming increasingly popular in younger fast pitch leagues, some leagues even requiring them. Curveball The expression "to throw

7396-399: Was too yellow to get hit by a bat. Because catchers frequently use two fingers to signal for a curve, the pitch is also referred to as "the deuce" or "number two". Candy Cummings , a star pitcher in the 1860s and 1870s, is widely credited with inventing the curveball. In his biography of Cummings, Stephen Katz provides proof. Several other pitchers of Cummings' era claimed to have invented

#930069