When I was a kid I was a tom boy with a little princess hidden inside. Like most people I learned some of lifes ways from my parents, grandparents and friends. Each in their own way guided me while I grew to stand on my own. Either by using what I learned from them sharing what they learned through their experiences or by them holding my hand when I needed them.

While I will always value my loved ones and friends for their time, patience and the back bone basics of who I am. I have to acknowledge that many of my biggest teachings in life have come completely from "Left field". The unexpected crisis. The screaching halt of what is reality and what tomorrow holds in comparison to what it was just moments before....."The Curve Ball".

I was the oldest and yes while I was the cutest I was not a boy. So, I played sports and I was very competitive. My dad coached my softball team and we did well. Softball was the answer from "the community" when us girls wanted to join Little League and play officially along side the boys in League play just as we did on the field every weekend and all summer long. Seems "the community" didn't want us girls to out do the boys at a public venue. Heavens no!

My dad also coached the boys team. So, I gained a lot of knowledge from both worlds. My dad's love was pitching. He dauntidly struggled to teach me different pitches.The slider, the fast ball, the knuckle ball and then there was "The Curveball". I'll be the first to say I wasn't a pitcher. I've always been more of a defensive player so, catcher it was. I actually held some records in the area for a short lived nano second. I was always picked first in school yard games even when the boys were the captains. So, not being a pitcher wasn't a bad thing at least not for me but, I do remember some of the basics it taught me......

I remember the rules and the holds of some of the pitches still. "The Curveball" is the most elusive pitch and the most dangerous to pitchers.There can be lot's of damage and injury when the pitcher is not properly developed into throwing a curve. Most teams and even schools ban "The Curveball" these days due to the complexity of the pitch and it's demand on the human body to produce it well enough to do it justice.

I could go on and on about this stuff but, who has the time when life is happening now! So, let's break it down and tweek it a bit.....hope you follow along.....and I'll see you at homeplate!

"The Curveball" is thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin causing it to dive in a downward as it approaches the plate. Its close relatives are the slider and the slurve. The "curve" of the ball varies from pitcher to pitcher..... (no one else out there like you so, while there are similiar experiences they can share only YOU can choose your destiny)

"The Curveball" life throws at you is actually a character builder and an opportunity to develop you into who you really are ( you just don't know it)....you could just slide through it or develop your own way.....again, only you have the power to make your destiny no matter what others do or say.

"The Curveball" is gripped much like a cup or drinking glass is held. ( is your cup half empty or half full ? )  The pitcher places the middle finger on and parallel to one of the long seams (utilizes what he/she has learned from others life experiences and your own) and the thumb just behind the seam on the opposite side of the ball such that if looking from the top down, the hand should form a "C shape" with the horseshoe pointing in towards the palm following the contour of the thumb. The index finger is placed alongside the middle finger, and the other two extraneous fingers are folded in towards the palm with the knuckle of the ring finger touching the leather. ( Did you get all that ? .....that's right...it's confusing as hell until you do). Occasionally, some pitchers will flare out these two fingers straight and away from the ball to keep them clear of the throwing motion, ( Actually I think "the Curveball" pre-empted the invention of "the Bird" which is a ONE finger gesture....lol)." The Curveball" and slider share nearly identical grips and throwing motion. ( You can buck up and face it or do what the weak do and slide through it hoping to be less scaved by it......sometimes we just aren't ready. Be warned though...YOU CAN'T hide from it forever).

The delivery of "The Curveball" is entirely different from that of most other pitches. ( It's unpredicatable when it happens).The pitcher at the top of the throwing arc will snap the arm and wrist in a downward motion. The ball first leaves contact with the thumb and tumbles over the index finger thus imparting the forward or "top-spin" characteristic of a curveball. ( You usually do sense something is going to change BUT brush it off  because everything else is still familiar...or is it? STRRR-IKE ! )The result is the exact opposite pitch of the ordinary fast ball's backspin. The direction of the flight path with forward-spin, with the slant of rotation perpendicular to the intended path much like a reel type mower or a bowling ball. (It will definetly feel like you were hit with a bowling ball and there was no way you knew it was coming....OUCH!)
The amount of break on the ball depends on how hard the pitcher can snap the throw off, or how much forward spin can be put on the ball. The harder the snap, the more the pitch will break. (Just when you feel like you are broken is when your true charachter will begin to develop)."The Curveball" primarily breaks downward, BUT can also break toward the pitcher's off hand to varying degrees. ( If you consider all options and take the positive angle YOU can use it to grow into a better person). From a hitter's perspective, the curve ball will start in one location, usually high or at the top of the strike zone, and then dive rapidly as it approaches the plate. The most effective curve balls will start breaking at the height of the arc of the ball flight, and continue to break more and more rapidly as they approach and cross through the strike zone. ( If you choose to face this head on and truely listen and see with open eyes you CAN and will make it through this, perhaps even a better person).

Real or Illusion?
There has been debate on whether a curve ball actually curves or is just an illusion. In 1949, Ralph B. Lightfoot, an aeronautical engineer used wind tunnel tests to prove that a curve ball does in fact actually curve. On whether a curve ball is caused by an illusion, Hall of Famer pitcher Dizzy Dean has been quoted in a number of variations on this basic premise: "Stand behind a tree 60 feet away, and I'll whomp you with an optical illusion!" (This shit is really happening....so, no matter how hard you try to run, hide or avoid it...guess what ? ....it won't be over until you face it head on.)

History
Baseball lore has it that " The Curveball" was invented in the early 1870s by Fred Goldsmith or Candy Cummings (it is debatable). An early demonstration of the "skewball" or curveball occurred at the Capitoline Grounds in Brooklyn in August, 1870 by Fred Goldsmith. In 1869, a reporter for the New York Clipper described Phonnery Martin as an "extremely hard pitcher to hit for the ball never comes in a straight line‚ but in a tantalizing curve." If the observation is true, this would pre-date Cummings and Goldsmith. In the past, major league pitchers Bob Feller, Virgil Trucks, Herb Score, Camilo Pascual and Sandy Koufax were regarded as having outstanding curveballs. Other notable curveball pitchers since 1900 are/were Barry Zito, Adam Wainwright, Sal Maglie, Dwight Gooden, Nolan Ryan, David Wells, Darryl Kile, Matt Morris, Orel Hershiser, Aaron Sele, Tommy Bridges, Bert Blyleven, Steve Carlton, and Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown.

Bottom line is this my friends.....

Baseball is the game of God's, and Boy does he know how to throw "The Curveball" at ya!                      

Thank God ....he also gave us the ability to Play the Game! So, Batter UP! .....by DLC


***Wikipedia definition partially used.