The Knuckleball:Greatest Pitch Ever {3}
Growing up there was only one professional athlete who shared the same last name as me, Charlie Hough. For those who have never heard of Charlie Hough let me enlighten you. He began his career as a traditional pitcher in in 1966, four years later he learned to throw a knuckleball and a few years later he became one of the go to guys for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Hough won 216 games in his 25 year career and threw the first pitch in the Florida Marlins history.
Needless to say as I became a fan late in his career, yet he was one of my sports heros growing which led to an obsession with the odd pitch called the knuckleball. The knuckleball doesn’t require great power or speed, no the ball is thrown in the 55-75 mile per hour zone, which is very slow for a major league pitcher. The idea is for the ball not to spin which creates a unique air flow over the stitches of the ball sending it in all sorts of directions. This makes it difficult for hitters to hit and for catchers to catch. Charlie Lau once commented, “There are two theories on catching the knuckleball… unfortunately, neither of the theories work.” You really must see a knuckleball that is working to appreciate it, I love it and if the chance to see one comes up at Kaufman this year I’ll post it here and you are invited to join me for the game.
With baseball training camps opening up this week I thought it was a good time to find out who is throwing a knuckleball in the big leagues today. My research has given me 3 names to keep an eye on this season if you wish to see the greatest pitch ever invented.
Tim Wakefield (Boston Red Sox) – Tim began his professional career as an infielder. After a scout told him he would never make it beyond AA baseball with his skill, he learned to pitch a knuckleball. He has now pitched in 15 Major League seasons and trails only Roger Clemens in Red Sox’s career wins list with a total of 168. He will pitch again this year for the Red Sox.
Charlie Haeger (Chicago White Sox) – Charlie was originally drafted as a “traditional” pitcher. After going 1-7 in the minors he decided to try his hand at professional golf. During that time he practiced with the knuckleball and has seen some success going between the Majors and AAA ball the last two seasons. He is in spring training with the White Sox again and fighting for a Major League roster spot.
R.A. Dickey (Seattle Mariners) – Dickey began his career with the Texas Rangers. He throws a weird version of the Knuckleball he calls “The Thang.” In one of the weirdest baseball stories ever he was accused of stealing this pitch from a high school pitcher named Paul Snyder. The accusations even lead to a lawsuit over a “stolen” pitch. In the end his name was cleared. Dickey has struggled in recent years, this year he is fighting to make the Mariners big league roster, well see.
So, if you love baseball and think you’d like to go pro in spite of your lack of skill it is time to get working on the greatest pitch in the sport, the amazing Knuckleball.
