How To Grip and Throw A Two (2) Seam Fastball

There are a few ways to grip a 2 seam fastball. The first is to grip the baseball with the pointer and middle fingers together, parallel to the seams where they get closer together, between the seams (your fingers will cover the sweet spot of the baseball). The ring finger and pinkie should be tucked comfortably on the side of the baseball. The thumb should be extended straight directly under the pointer finger. Similar to the 4 seam fastball, if you alter the thumbs position, you may increase or decrease movement, velocity, and control. If you stay on top of the baseball at the release point, it should rotate with backspin through the air with only two seams breaking the wind. When throwing this pitch, the pitcher should pronate a little (meaning the pitcher’s pointer finger will rotate in towards the body at the release point). This will create the pitch to tail arm side for pitchers (for a rhp it will tail away from a lefty and in to a righty / for a lhp it will tail away from a righty and in to a lefty).

Another grip for the 2 seam fastball is to grip the baseball by putting the tips of your pointer and middle fingers directly on top of the seam, that if you were to just rotate your hand upwards from the first 2 seam example. This gives you something to grab on to aiding in control and movement for some people because you will have a better grip. All other variables are the same as the above example.

There is one more grip for the 2 seam fastball that some pitchers use. For this grip you should hold the ball directly across the 2 seams of the baseball. Again your pointer and middle fingers should cover the sweet spot of the ball but this time it is perpendicular to the closer seams. This will give you even more grip than the second example. All other variables stay the same as the above two examples of the two seam fastball.