Two-seam fastball

The pitch has the speed of a fastball and can also include late-breaking action caused by varying the pressure of the index and middle fingers on the ball.

Typically, the two-seam has more movement if the pitcher applies index fingertip pressure, or holds the baseball deeper in the hand.

[6] In either case, the pitch is thrown in a two-seam orientation and has a gyro angle far from 0 degrees, leading to seam-shifted wake effects that cause downward and lateral movement compared to a four-seam fastball.

However, power pitchers such as Justin Verlander combine control, high velocity, and break to make the two-seamer one of the most effective pitches in baseball.

Pitchers such as Greg Maddux, Bob Stanley, Brandon McCarthy, David Price, Eddie Guardado and Marcus Stroman are notable for having success at the major-league levels with two-seam fastballs in the mid 80s to lower 90s.