More on improving your Curveball Expanding the Toolbox - The Breaking & Off-speed Pitches -. Go to the Pitching DVD and Video Clip Library for more info & DVD preview, click the DVD inset to go to detail page and see a preview of the Integrated Curveball Drill Set segment. Learning Curve - A potent curveball can make a batter's head spin. A pitching ace tells you how to do it - safely and effectively. Mastering the Breaking Ball - The Coach's thoughts regarding mastering the curve and the state of the modern breaking ball - the pros and cons of power curves and sliders.  More on improving your Fastball Coach Bagonzi's new 2-hour DVD, The Holy Grail - The Fastball - the first in the planned 4-module DVD series.  Click here to preview the DVD designed to help one understand, build, and hone this all-important foundation pitch.

The Demise of “Charlie” VS the Resurrection of "Lord Charles"

By Dr. John A. Bagonzi

One of the pathetic improbabilities that has existed in the last decades of baseball pitching thinking is the “Quick Fix” phenomenon - sliders, cutters, splitters, sinkers as an answer to all or many pitching problems, and the expediency with which it can be accomplished.  Lost in this transmission is one of the great classy and graceful pitches, that had a stature and regality that was deserved, as its complement to the ever-prominent fastball.  We see a modicum, but definitive return of  "Charlie" (The down and out curve), that absolutely disrupts a batter’s effectiveness when mixed in an orderly North-South style of pitching.

Umpires have reduced the “portal of entry” to an almost non-existent event, because of the catcher’s use of the backhand approach in receiving the ball.  Batters obviously recognized this deficiency and depend on the umpire’s proclivity for calling the out curve a “ball” and catchers continuing to lose this pitch.  The simplicity of the slider and the likelihood of it being called a strike has rendered “ Charlie” to a stature unbecoming his development and importance.  In the all important reverse rotations concept, and the North-South style of pitching, Charlie has an eminent position and rightly so, in enhancing speed change, angular change, trajectory imbalance, eye level distortion and a serious attack on any batters who have weaknesses on controlling both sides of the strike zone, as well as changes of speed.

While splitters with their down breaking quality have become a great equalizer, and the change up that sinks, as well as the slider that burns the outside.  Also included is the cutter that bores in and or away with gusto. The majesty of the great, stunning down breaking curve still wreaks havoc, when it interacts the hitter zones and is handled properly by the catcher and the umpire.  This is the area that seriously needs to be addressed.  The automatic strike zone rigs are a great step.  We need to analyze the numbers of curve balls lost to chance and bad decisions and bad catching mechanics before Charlie gets put on the back burner again

Charlie’s Deterioration

A true “Charlie” had a stressful period of deterioration while everyone bad-mouthed his stature and frequently referred him to the “junk ball” league, and that being  his essence.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The preponderance of “quick fix schemes,” likely due to the philosophy of the times, led  the supreme curve ball and its majestic form to a demeaning hybrid, because of the relationship between a slider, slurve, cutter and the gradual loss of the supinating angle.  This amount of supination is so characteristic and important in the determination of a pure “Charlie.”  This hybridization of a purebred curve ball to the ultimate difficult to recognize" half curve" and" slurve" from its startling progenitor (Charlie) was and is a demeaning process.  It is now time for the return of the purebred.  A pure Charlie becomes the “Lord Charles” again, and not to be mistaken because " Lord Charles" is majestic, visible to all, magnificent in its artistic quality, and above all one of the most effective pitches in baseball.  The fact that its diminution and demeaning has taken place, is largely one of application and a sort of lazy, quick fix mentality that has been accentuated and effected by backhanding catchers and umpires who insist on giving Charlie a “ ball” call, while embellishing his cousin, the slider, gift calls (strikes).   This is because it is easier for the catcher, first to catch, and second  to "frame" or "shape" the pitch.  If we can overcome this deficit by sharpening catchers skills and create a more precise observation of the portal of entry of the great curve and thus get the correct call, we will be giving  the "real" curve its just status as a viable and important pitch, particularly in the north-south style of pitching.

What does a slider do? 

This pitch has been hybridized, or even mongrolized, over the years, and now what one may refer to as the slider, is likely to be called by many a slurve, some as a hard curve, and some as a big cutter.  There is a zone however when the curve stops, lateral break takes over and velocity dictates, and the precise pitching student labels each of these pitches quite often correctly, by the amount of down break and velocity that becomes involved.

1.      A curve is strictly two-dimensional with its dictating characteristics being its sharp and reasonably large down break-perhaps correctly called an “ out curve”.  Its trajectory is vertical and in two planes.  Its speed is off 10 to 15 mph from the fastball, some even more.  So in effect it is a changeup.  Ideally a 6/12 to 1/7 rotation makes for a great curve.

2.      A cutter is really a fastball.  It is the equivalent of a tailing fastball, but in reverse.  It probably will never consistently reach the speed of a tailing fastball, because the wrist turns in (supinates) and slight off- center speed will reduce velocity some with the advantage of a sharp cut.  Some lose almost nothing on their “cutter” which makes the pitch frightening. (Mariano Rivera)

3.      Slider - ideally this pitch would have a spiral spin, and the action of the pitch would be late, but because there is a concentrated spin, the ball slows somewhat, but it is truly a fast pitch and therein lies its mystique.  It can be interpreted as a fastball and then it breaks sharply.   A real pure slider will break down some and sharply.  This  enhances its effectiveness.

4.      A slurve is essentially a flat pitch.  It has its value in its big break and it’s off speed quality.  It is really not deceptive because of its flatness, but placed well can point out the holes, particularly in a big hitters swing.  Less break becomes slider-like. More break becomes a curve.

For me, give me always a good curve for the second pitch, as few hitters can handle a good curve.  Obviously all hit the poor or hanging curve, as they do other pitches that hang.  The good curve has the multi- trajectory advantage that works in the North-South schematic of pitching and has the change –up effect always.  This obviously will intensify the appearance of the fast ball.  It’s a study in opposite rotations - a dilemma in  eye focus for anyone.

Some pitchers possess all of these pitches (Matsuzaka).  I suspect it is difficult to have supreme mastery on all of them, but it is not unlikely to have mastery over two of them.  This is my strong suggestion, “meat and potatoes” can be:

1.   Fastball and Curve ball

2.      Fastball and Slider

3.      Fastball and slurve

4.      Fastball and cutter

5.      Fastball and splitter.

 The splitter has to be included in this schematic as it has truly enhanced some pitchers  careers, and it can be a North-South style of pitching.  Let's get "Lord Charles" into the act again.