How to Throw a Curveball and Other Breaking Pitches

Breaking pitches are the trick shots of baseball. Working through spin, aerodynamics and a bit of illusion, breaking pitches, such as the curveball, break their forward momentum and "fall off," or curve, as they reach the plate. Expecting the ball to be in a certain location when the bat is swung, batters swing into the air. Curveballs and other breaking pitches aren't as dominant as in years past, with most pitchers relying on fastballs and other non-breaking pitches, but a good curveball continues to baffle hitters when the time is right. Although learning the mechanics of breaking pitches is fairly straightforward, mastering them takes years of practice.

Things You'll Need

  • Baseball
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Instructions

  1. Throwing the Curveball

    • 1

      Grip the ball properly. Rest your middle finger along the inside of one of the ball's seams and your thumb on the inside of the opposite seam. Your index finger sits next to the middle finger, while the third and fourth fingers are tucked away from the other fingers, bent in an L.

    • 2

      Wind up for the pitch. While winding up and preparing to release the curveball, begin pulling down on the ball to increase the rotation when your throwing arm is even with your shoulder, in an L shape.

    • 3

      Follow through on the curveball. As you begin pulling down on the ball with your hand, release the the ball with a quick snap. This causes the followthrough to fall short; your hand should end level with the opposite side of your waist at the end of the followthrough. (Fastballs and other non-breaking pitches require a full followthrough, with the throwing hand ending up at knee level.)

    The Slider

    • 4

      Grip the baseball in the same manner as in the curveball, but then tuck the third and fourth fingers behind the baseball, so that the third finger touches your thumb.

    • 5

      Wind up for the throw. As with the curveball, when the ball is even with your shoulder, cock your wrist slightly to allow the ball to snap off the thumb side of your index finger. This causes the spin that marks a good slider.

    • 6

      Follow through on the slider as with a fastball, with your throwing arm extending to the opposite knee. The slider is the third-fastest pitch in baseball, after the four- and two-seam fastballs.