Rise, curve and screw with pitchers

Princeton's softball team features many underutilized defenders. The typical inning of work for an infielder can seem like a relaxing rest and a good chance to work on one's skills at blowing bubbles while the Tigers' pitchers fan the opposing team's batters at unprecedented rates.

The team's position players can send their thanks — and Christmas gifts — to one of Princeton's greatest pitching staffs of all time. Senior Erin Snyder and sophomore Kristen Schaus form a dominant tandem — last year they were the first pair of teammates in the school's history to each strike out more than 200 hitters.

Their efforts earned them first-team All-Ivy honors. Behind them, junior Calli Jo Varner had an excellent year splitting time on the field and in the circle as a relief pitcher.

Given how stellar the Tigers are and how crucial pitching will be to the team's success this season, it behooves the fan to understand the techniques behind the Orange and Black's dominant performances in the circle. As in virtually every other subject, the best teachers are here at Princeton.

The first key to understanding softball pitching — and a crucial difference from baseball — is the minimal importance of the fastball. Though a typical baseball pitcher will throw fastballs at least 70 percent of the time, this pitch is rarely used in softball.

"We do not throw fastballs in games... they just end up getting hit," Varner said.

The reason is that fastballs are too predictable. Though a pitcher may succeed in overwhelming a good hitter during her first at-bat, most college-level batters are skilled enough to be able to time the pitch.

"It is very rare for a college pitcher to be able to 'just blow it by batters' because most hitters will be able to catch up to straight speed by their second at-bat," Snyder said.

Instead, the Tigers' staff teaches the team's pitchers to focus on misdirecting hitters and disrupting their timing. Special emphasis is placed on mixing up pitches and showing opponents a full repertoire of off-speed and breaking pitches — including riseballs, dropballs, curveballs, screwballs and changeups.

Some explanation of terminology seems to be in order here.

There are two broad categories into which these pitches can be divided. Technically, anything that is not a fastball can be considered an "off-speed" pitch, which simply means that the ball is not thrown at maximum velocity. A changeup is the simplest type of pitch in this group. The changeup resembles a fastball except for the fact that it should be thrown significantly slower. The key, however, is to make hitters expect a fastball — pitchers generally throw a changeup with the same arm speed, but they hold the ball tighter so that it has less speed.

Within the off-speed category is a smaller group of pitches called "breaking balls" — pitches that move in an unexpected direction, often very suddenly. Curveballs are a classic example.

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A curveball's movement is often colloquially described as "falling off the table." This essentially means that the ball approaches on a straight line path and then appears to suddenly dive downward. Many pitchers can also impart a bit of lateral movement on the ball so that it tails away from the hitter.

Pitchers throw breaking balls by putting specific types of spin on the ball. Curves are usually thrown with a combination of side-spin and topspin, with the former producing lateral movement away from the hitter while the latter gives the pitch its characteristic dive.

Putting the opposite type of side-spin on the pitch will make it move in on the hitter, and is called a screwball. The dropball is similar and perhaps simpler — it relies exclusively on topspin to give it an extreme downward break.

In contrast, riseballs — an essential part of most pitchers' repertoires — are the exact opposites of drops, curves and screwballs. By putting backspin on the ball, a riseball does not dive but instead appears to move upward.

By throwing a mix of off-speed pitches, Princeton's pitchers can make it nearly impossible for the opposing batters to anticipate where their pitches will end up. The batters have to guess whether the pitch will fall or rise and also whether it will move in or out.

When asked about pitching strategy, the staff mentioned mixing pitches frequently, along with the need to keep hitters confused.

Varner said, "It is crucial that we mix our pitches to keep the batters guessing."

Snyder summed up the best-case scenario. "Ideally, a pitcher would like to be able to get a batter out without throwing any strikes — just getting them to chase our pitches that usually end up outside of the strike zone."

Considering the rates at which Snyder and company are mowing down opposing batters, someone may have to remind the Tigers' position players that defense is more than an excuse to pick up a good suntan.