rising fastball
Ascending high heat
A rising fastball is a pitch in baseball that appears to rise as it approaches the plate, defying the batter's expectation of downward movement.
Physically, no pitch actually rises against gravity, but a fastball thrown with exceptional backspin creates lift that makes it drop less than the batter's brain predicts—producing the illusion of upward movement.
Pitchers who throw high in the strike zone exploit this effect: He blew a rising fastball past him for strike three.
- heaterDevice producing warmth
- fastballMaximum-speed baseball throw
- pitchFrequency of sound
- velocityDirected rate of motion
- radar gunDevice measuring object velocity
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