Best and easiest Screwball

[Beeg]

DD's screwball is the same as her fastball, except she ends on the left side of the mount, not directly straight. (There, I gave out her secret.) To the batter, it looks like she is pitching a fastball, but with that step off to the left, the ball goes straight then curves to the left side of the catcher. Her previous screwball had her curling her fingers in a way that could easily hurt her shoulder, and her physical therapist advised against screwball and curveball until she's 14. With this new screwball, it is the same as a fastball so no unnatural curling of her fingers, so she was able to pitch them since she was 12. On top of it, since every fastball pitch should also be a drop ball, so not only does the screwball curves away from the batter, it also drops, making it very difficult to make contact.

 

[fanboi22]

DD's screwball is the same as her fastball, except she ends on the left side of the mount, not directly straight. (There, I gave out her secret.) To the batter, it looks like she is pitching a fastball, but with that step off to the left, the ball goes straight then curves to the left side of the catcher. Her previous screwball had her curling her fingers in a way that could easily hurt her shoulder, and her physical therapist advised against screwball and curveball until she's 14. With this new screwball, it is the same as a fastball so no unnatural curling of her fingers, so she was able to pitch them since she was 12. On top of it, since every fastball pitch should also be a drop ball, so not only does the screwball curves away from the batter, it also drops, making it very difficult to make contact.

Bold above, can you explain how this happens? What is the correlation with step left and curve right? Thanks.

 

[radness]

Hmmm
That would tend to be
Not curve
Angle
Release point changes trajectory...
not so much the ball itself

Video is worth a thousand words on this topic

 

[curveballer124]

The best you can do is throw a two seam fastball put a little bit more finger pressure on the inside seam and it will cut inside on a RHH. Release it late it’ll be high and inside release it early it’ll be low and inside. And she will be able to throw it with a good amount of velocity….

Aside from that the more time she spends chasing the “screwball” is time taken away from her learning a proper rise ball, which will be far more effective in the long run.


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[Fury_Mike]

+1 for Sluggers response. The best 'screwball' that I have seen, is the 2 seam 'fastball' with the Boardmember 6-12 yawwed spin that breaks down and in to a RHH. My DD hates the feel of it in the grip but when the air flow over the ball is just right, it really is a fun pitch to watch.

I have several pitchers that can throw it, and it’s really tough to hit when thrown correctly

 

[Hillhouse]

DD's screwball is the same as her fastball, except she ends on the left side of the mount, not directly straight. (There, I gave out her secret.) To the batter, it looks like she is pitching a fastball, but with that step off to the left, the ball goes straight then curves to the left side of the catcher. Her previous screwball had her curling her fingers in a way that could easily hurt her shoulder, and her physical therapist advised against screwball and curveball until she's 14. With this new screwball, it is the same as a fastball so no unnatural curling of her fingers, so she was able to pitch them since she was 12. On top of it, since every fastball pitch should also be a drop ball, so not only does the screwball curves away from the batter, it also drops, making it very difficult to make contact.

RAD is right, you're talking about an angled pitch not one that curves inward. And the further you go in her pitching, the better the hitters will be too. And if you don't think they see a difference in how she strides off the rubber (to the left for her 'screwball') then you're in for a big shock. For good hitters, never mind the great hitters, this is a delight to see what's coming in advance. Not only that but pitching is all about rhythm. She's purposely breaking her rhythm by altering her delivery. Would you ever see a baseball pitcher change his stride for a pitch? No. They might alter arm angles but the stride stays the same. And MLB hitters are trained to see arm angles at release. I remember a clip on Bonds one time and they showed him in the film room. The monitor would flash a grip of the ball for a split second on the screen and he was trying to identify the grip of the pitch in a fraction of a second from seeing it on screen. Now, I'm not saying softball goes to that extreme but, they don't have to when the pitcher is giving it to them by stepping differently. That becomes painfully obvious.

The others talking about a 2 seamer. Yes, that can cut inward. So can a 4 seam with finger pressure. The 2 seam can run inward a little easier because it's easier to put the finger pressure in the right spot. But, the ball still has downward spin on it. So it's actually a cutter drop, not a screwball. Think about it, 2 or 4 seam when the ball is released you still have forward spin. The goal you're trying for with this is to angle the downward spin so it cuts in a bit. But don't lose track of the more important spin in this movement you're doing, the down spin. Cutting the ball in is great but, it's even better when you have a sharp drop to go with it. It's awful risky to keep the ball flat, hoping it cuts in without the drop attached. Cause if it doesn't cut like it's supposed to, it's a hanging pitch with ZERO movement and will get drilled. However, I still say using a 2 seam against the better teams and hitters is easier for them to see than a 4 seam pitch.

 

[Fury_Mike]

That’s what I thought. The screwball is just a two seam with movement.

If you position the hand correctly and the body you can create a fastball/screw.

It’s not limited to a 2-seam.

 

[Fury_Mike]

Have her switch her two seam grip from index and middle to ring and middle. If that doesn't change things then start adjusting the grip to one side of seams, to on the seams, to the other side of the seams. If the spin is correct grip changes will affect the direction of the break.

Does anyone throw this cutter-drop using a grip around the horse shoe with Pointer/middle fingers together? It’s a back hip release. Middle finger pressure, and take off thumb pressure at release.

 

[sluggers]

I have several pitchers that can throw it, and it’s really tough to hit when thrown correctly

Where is a video? Where are all these pitchers? Shouldn't there be ONE VIDEO somewhere showing the pitch during a game?

 

[curveballer124]

Never tried it but I’ll give it a shot tomorrow


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