Postblank
05-28-2007, 12:02 AM
I did a Google Image Search on "Circle Change" and on the first page alone found 3 or 4 different ways to apply the circle portion of a circle change grip. I was wondering, since it varies from Maddux to Hoffman to Moyer to Santana to Hamels, what is it that the circles do to the baseball? I've tried some of the grips just sitting down, each grip seems to involve a side of a knuckle on the index finger applying more pressure to the baseball than the rest of said finger. Does this add movement to the pitch, just stabilize it, take a little extra off it or what?
baseball2234
05-28-2007, 05:06 PM
i think it gives it down movement down and to the right from a right handed pitcher and down and to the left from a lefy. Im not a pitcher but sometimes ill throw some stuff for fun and i find the circle change hard to control
Williamsburg2599
05-28-2007, 05:34 PM
I believe it adds movement by putting more force on one side of the ball than the other, but I not a pitching expert either.
scorekeeper
05-28-2007, 07:59 PM
I did a Google Image Search on "Circle Change" and on the first page alone found 3 or 4 different ways to apply the circle portion of a circle change grip. I was wondering, since it varies from Maddux to Hoffman to Moyer to Santana to Hamels, what is it that the circles do to the baseball? I've tried some of the grips just sitting down, each grip seems to involve a side of a knuckle on the index finger applying more pressure to the baseball than the rest of said finger. Does this add movement to the pitch, just stabilize it, take a little extra off it or what?
It isn’t the application of the “circle”, it’s the change in velocity between it and other pitches, the appearance that the pitching motion, especially the arm speed, is the same as the FB, and the rotation is as close as possible to the FB that make the pitch effective. IOW, it’s the deception above all else.
However, just as with any pitch, every pitcher is going to have different luck with different grips, and arm angles are going to cause the action to be much different too. IOW, there is no “BEST” CU! Experiment! Try all kinds of different grips. And remember, a split is nothing more than a CU, so maybe that’ll work best for you.
Don’t worry about movement on the CU! That’s your absolutely lowest priority. Its not that movement isn’t great, but movement also means control difficulties. If you ever get to the point where you can pretty much throw the CU over the plate at will, that’s when you can start worrying about movement on it.