The F.U. - the next great pitch in baseball….

We’ve gone through different periods in baseball where certain pitches were popular and dominant.

There’s always been the fast-ball; they throw it 2-seam, 4 seam, no-seam. Then there’s the curve ball. They have the sinker, the slider, the slurve, the fork-ball, the split-finger, the knuckle-ball, the change-up. And off those they have endless variations combinations and permutations of each pitch depending on arm angles, finger pressure and leverage on the seams.

Remember when Bruce Sutter perfected and started throwing his devastating split-finger? You knew it was coming but you couldn’t do anything about it. You knew he was going to throw it, the umpire knew he was going to throw it, everyone watching knew he was going to throw it, the announcer said he was going to throw it, the batter knew he was going to throw it – but they couldn’t hit it anyway. For those of you who aren’t old enough to remember, the closest analogy I can give you is that it’s kind of like everyone knows Mariano Rivera is going to throw the cutter, but they still can’t get the sweet spot on it when they swing.

Well now we have the newest pitch. Thanks to modern science techniques used in laboratories and wind tunnels and tested on ball fields in actual game situations, kids in high schools and colleges all across this country will soon be throwing the hottest pitch to come along since the game was invented.

The pitch is known as the F. U. (Self explanatory – see photo)

Rumor has it that Stephen Strasburg the 1st overall pick in the 2009 MLB draft has perfected it …… (see success.)

When thrown properly the F. U. comes with the same arm action and speed of the fast ball, but the action of the knuckle-ball. Just imagine standing in the batter’s box and trying to hit a Nolan Ryan fast ball that is moving like a Tim Wakefield knuckle-ball.

The best way to describe how this happens is that only one finger resides on the top of the ball (less friction – more speed) so the ball comes out hot, but the index finger and the ring finger pull down on the 2 seams providing an unstable rotation countering the natural back rotation from the middle finger. The best way to describe the action it is a fast ball with knuckle-ball action.

The grip is unique to any other pitch and to date the MLB community has been hesitant to embrace it as it undoubtedly will come with an entire new group of injuries and side effects.

"If you could invest in Dr. Andrews practice, I would say that now is a good time”

said one MLB scout on the condition of anonimity.

Additionally as hard as the pitch is to hit, the pitch appears to be equally hard to catch. That’s a problem.

I can tell you this. If Strasburg has success with it and stays healthy, you will start to see F. U. specialists on every MLB team, MiLB team and in colleges and high schools across America. Basically, if the player big enough to grip it, he’s gonna try to throw it. - Mike Gross

Michael Gross, in conjunction with a prominent sports agency runs a strength, conditioning and agility program that many agents send their “to-be-drafted” athletes, prior to being drafted. Many pro athletes have also used the facilities for rehabilitation after injury. Over 90 professional athletes including current MLB ball players have attended his institution during the past 3 years.