RB
I wouldn't disagree with your math and I am guessing you were only referring to ball plane/bat plane. So that beginning pitchers don't read and misinterpret the sequence, the riseball takes a certain amount of speed to be effective so the drop/crop might jump over the rise in the learning sequence until a certain level of pitch speed is attained.
I wouldn't disagree with your math and I am guessing you were only referring to ball plane/bat plane. So that beginning pitchers don't read and misinterpret the sequence, the riseball takes a certain amount of speed to be effective so the drop/crop might jump over the rise in the learning sequence until a certain level of pitch speed is attained.
Righty to righty and lefty to lefty the Crop is breaking "on the bat plane" (maybe not exactly on bat plane but pretty much in that same direction - easier to hit - from my perspective). Of course lefty batters struggle more with lefty croppers because they don't see that many of them. My opinion is that a spin pitch should break away from the bat plane to the largest angular degree. AND it should break away from the bat plane more towards the handle than the end of the bat (so for a righty-on-righty that means a screw can be a more effective pitch than a crop).That's why, from my opinion drop balls, off speed pitches that have more angular drop, and the riseball, are the most effective pitches. (This perspective again is for the most common Righty-to-righty scenario).
So from my little mathematical head a RHP should take this pitch learning sequence:
1. Fast
2. Change
3. Rise - ONLY if they exhibit the rare capability to actually throw one (I would estimate 95% can't)
4. Drop
5. Screw (by the time this pitch comes around the Change & Drop have merged into one pitch - Offspeed peel drop)
LHP:
1. Fast
2. Change
3. Rise - ONLY if they exhibit the rare capability to actually throw one (I would estimate 95% can't)
4. Crop
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