I saw two seperate articles on ESPN today about two big time pitchers developing a change up. Both Sheets and Schilling are trying to develop a good change up. These are two pitchers, when healthy, are dominant, yet they are trying to add stuff to their game this late in their career. It largely depends on the pitcher, but what pitch is the best out there. I think Mariano Rivera's cutter is the best pitch of any pitcher in the league. It's not over powering, and you know its coming every single time, but you still cant do anything with it. I also really like that power slider that Randy Johnson and others throw. What do you guys think?
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"In big games, the action slows down for him where it speeds up for others. I've told him, 'I'll trade my past for your future.'" -Reggie Jackson on Derek Jeter
I just cant get over that cutter. Yea I'm a Yankees guy, but that has nothing to do with it. I was watching the Yankees Tigers today and Steve Phillips got talking about his cutter. I absolutely love Steve Phillips because he is short removed from being a GM and just knows his stuff. But he was saying that batters will be at the plate and say they think they got it dialed in and start to swing and it will just move 3 inches right over the plate. Then someone asked why people dont learn that cutter and he said its because its a motion of how the ball rolls off his fingers that just cant be taught. There's not many pitchers in the league that can say to a batter, alright I'm gonna throw the ball 93 mph, htis is what the pitch will be and I bet you cant hit it. That's what Rivera has been doing his whole career.
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"In big games, the action slows down for him where it speeds up for others. I've told him, 'I'll trade my past for your future.'" -Reggie Jackson on Derek Jeter
I think the change up is the still overall the best pitch out there. That is why Schilling and Sheets are trying to master it because when a pitcher has that pitch it just makes them more deadly. I agree with the cutter from Rivera, but what other pitcher can throw the cutter that well every pitch. I think none or nobody that I have heard of. Anyone who has a low to mid 90s' fastball and then they throw the change up, which looks the same coming off the hand, as a fastball does is going to be that more deadly. Everyone has a fastball to their repertoire so a change up is that more useful to a pitcher. I am pretty sure you have Santana, but that is a prime example of how effective it works. Hitters say the arm angle is the same and they cannot tell if the pitch is a fastball or change up. I guess it all depends on the situation too. Pitchers throw certain pitches at certain times in the count to certain hitters.
