Bob Schwartz

Few sports feats are more complicated than pitching a baseball. There are just so many ways to throw a football. There are infinite ways for a pitcher to grip a baseball and move his hand, wrist, arm, body, all with the intent of fooling a batter or getting contact that leads to outs. That’s why great pitchers are rare, and great or good pitchers may have bad games or bad seasons. It’s that hard.

Mordecai “Three Finger” Brown played in the major leagues from 1903 to 1916. His record of 239 wins–130 losses, with a 2.06 Earned Run Average, puts him in the elite of all-time pitchers. He did this with a pitching hand, due to youthful accidents, that had just three fully-working fingers. He adjusted his grip, in a way that gave him a unique curve ball.

We all have three working fingers on our pitching hand, however it happened, whether or not we know or acknowledge it. Rather than delude ourselves, we can practice a different grip that takes advantage of it, leaving batters perplexed and fans amazed.

© 2025 by Bob Schwartz