Masters
Seam-shifted wake is baseball’s latest and greatest buzz word, but what does it actually mean? While traditional spin on a baseball can help predict the way a pitch will move because of its spin-rate and direction, seam-shifted wake is a little different. The pitch moves in a way that’s unexpected based on how the pitch is spinning. This makes the pitch hard to pick up from a hitter’s perspective, but most importantly, it allows players to throw pitches that they wouldn’t normally be able to throw because of personal limitations.
How Does it Work?
Seam-shifted wake utilizes spin in a similar way to a traditional pitch, but is different in that it uses the seams of the ball to disrupt the air-flow around it. On a traditional (non seam-shifted) pitch, the ball, and subsequently the seams, create a wake of air behind it. This is similar to the wake of a boat or jetski in the water. When the ball position is in a slightly different position in the pitcher’s hand, the wake that the pitch creates can be pushed to one side of the ball or the other, causing it to move in a sharper and in a more effective way.
Why is Seam-shifted Wake Important?
The most common way to utilize seam-shifted wake in the MLB is by throwing a sinker. This is because, traditionally, a sinker requires a high amount of pronation at the end of the throw in order for it to move in the intended way. Seam-shifted wake, however, doesn’t require the same level of pronation in order to throw it. Pitchers who are biased towards supination are able to stay more behind the ball throughout the throw, but still able to throw this pitch. This is because the orientation of the seams, and how they interact with the air around the ball cause the movement, not the direction that the ball is spinning.
This is a good example of a seam-shifted sinker. In the video posted by Ben Brewster from Tread Athletics, Met’s starter Clay Holmes throws a sinker from a supinated hand position. This can be seen in the slow motion example by both his hand position and the painted part of the ball. This orientation normally would not create this movement pattern, but because of the way the ball is positioned in Holmes’ hand, he’s able to create that movement.