The gyroball pitch was first identified by the Japanese scientist Ryutaro Himeno (姫野 龍太郎), and later developed into a specific throwing technique by baseball instructor Kazushi Tezuka (手塚 一志), who used computer simulations to create a new style of delivery intended to reduce stress on the pitcher.
They published their work in a book, currently available only in Japan, the title of which is roughly translated as The Secret of the Miracle Pitch (魔球の正体).
Contrary to early speculation that the gyroball was a late moving breaking ball, the fact that the pitch travels with a bullet-spin denotes that the baseball is stabilized, hence the lack of movement.
When throwing a gyroball, a pitcher holds the side of the ball with a fastball grip placed on the baseball's center (or equator).
[3] Incidentally, the flight of some Knuckleball pitches, such as those thrown by R. A. Dickey, also have a forward pointing rotational axis similar to a gyroball.
The difference is, the knuckleball spins significantly more slowly and has less velocity, which greatly subjects the baseball to the effects of drag as well as gravity, and translates into an erratic flight-path.
A gyroball's stability is dependent upon its rotation speed and the amount of forward motion, resulting in a straight trajectory with less drop.
Its bullet-like spinning motion may hide the seams of a ball from the view of the batter, making it difficult to predict the pitch.
The gyroball is also often confused with a completely different Japanese pitch called the shuuto, due to an error in a well-known article by baseball writer Will Carroll.
Additionally, the gyroball is available in Baseball Mogul's player editor, and can be learned in Spring Training by pitchers that enter the game after 2005.