I call it the horseshoe seam simply because the seam itself looks like the shape of a horseshoe. Fastballs with lots of backspin can help to offset the effects of gravity on the baseball by reducing the amount of drop on the pitch due to the Magnus Effect. This can give batters the illusion of the vaunted “rising” fastball as the pitch drops less than normal .

Don’t set the grip until the ball is hidden in the glove just before the hand break. Raise the finger tips and pads slightly and apply baseball coaching supplies finger pressure between the first and second finger joints. Remember the ball is already off centered a little to the ring finger.

The cutter is not the same as a two-seam fastball – it has a very late break to it and breaks opposite of the two seamer. No matter how the ball is in your hand, you have no more than a quarter turn any direction to get a 4-seam grip. Here’s a list of cues that may be helpful in teaching or throwing a four-seam fastball yourself. If you believe adding velocity could be critical to your success,check out my proven programs for pitchers of all ages. Your arm angle is the angle at which your arm is at when you release the ball. The lower your arm angle, the more the ball will move on this pitch and the higher the arm angle, the less the ball will move on this pitch.

With a four-seam fastball, more spin means more power in the pitch. Grip the ball with the seams either on top or with your fingers across the narrowest seams. Pressure on your index and middle finger at the release point will produce added movement.

The four-seam fastball is fast, but it also affords pitchers a great amount of control over where they place their pitch. Knuckle curveball is an advanced variation of the curveball and is also called the spike curve. If you want to play mind games with the batter, try this pitching grip.