Pitching

Pitching Ballpark ClassicsYou pitch by placing our steel baseballs into the top of the pitching pipe, behind center field. You can either center the ball at the bottom of the pipe and let it go, or squeeze it with your thumb or fingers. The inside of the pitching pipe is slick, like a bowling alley, and the felt turf of the playing field is not. This unique combination of materials yields crazy spins that you'll learn to control with a little practice. Soon, you'll be breaking off curve balls and fooling batters just like the pros. 

By changing your finger placement and adjusting speed and spin, you can throw fastballs, curves, change-ups, sliders, and even create your own pitches. It’s easy to do, but challenging to perfect–just like real baseball.

Full count and bases loaded? You need a strike, and you don't have your best stuff today. Or, maybe you're playing a rookie and you want to give them a fighting chance. Just place the ball at 6 o'clock in the pipe, throw it down the heart of the plate, and hope for the best!

Different pitches of varying speeds can really baffle the batter. Think of the pitching pipe as a clock face, and start the ball at every position around the clock to dial in your locations. Then practice putting some spin in the ball. Here are four of the most popular pitches in baseball: the fastball, curve, changeup, and slider--as thrown in Ballpark Classics. Click the play button below to see how they look from the batter's box.

 


 

 Click to play
The Fastball

 

Maximum force and minimum spin help you really bring the heat, just make sure you can put it over the plate! Beware, throw the fastball too often without changing speeds and the batter will lock in on it. Goodbye, baseball.

A popular way to throw the fastball is to balance the ball in the pitching pipe underneath your thumb. Then, place your index finger under the pipe and squeeze. To put it on the outside corner, like the video at left, place the ball a little to the left of center. For some chin music, start the ball slightly to the right inside the pipe. Experiment with pressure, location, and change speeds.

 


 

 Click to play
The Curve

 

Getting the ball to bite into the felt turf about half way through the infield, results in a lovely arc that's as impressive to watch as it is impossible to hit, since the bat only covers outside edge of home plate. Can be hard to control, but develop a good one, and it's even harder for the batter to handle. 

With practice, letting the ball slide off the side of your finger or thumb at about 8 o'clock in the pipe will produce the pitch at left. 

 


 

 Click to play
The Changeup

 

Set up the hitter for a fastball, then freeze them with the changeup. It sounds like a fastball, even looks like a fastball, but once you master this pitch, its late movement will cause batter distress. The wickedest changeups appear to be fastballs, but once they catch up with their backspin they'll die just inches before home plate and roll harmlessly right across the dish. Strike three, looking.

To throw it, try the fastball approach but ease up a little and let the backspin do its thing.

 


 

 Click to play
The Slider

 

Once you have your curve under control, add a slider to your arsenal of pitches. A slider breaks hard and fast so you will need the right combination of backspin and speed to make it break. 

Apply some spin to the ball at the sides of the pipe for a tricky trajectory, and paint the inside and outside corners.