A bloop curve is a trick pitch in baseball. It gets likened to a slow-pitch softball pitch. The pitcher has a high arching trajectory but minimal velocity when this kind of pitch gets thrown. It is disguised as a curveball only to surprise the batter that it is not.
Here are the other Trick Pitches in Baseball:
- Curveball
A curveball has a lot of movement compared to any other pitch that a pitcher can make. He has to master how to throw it slower but with a more overall break. The curveball gets done to make the batter or hitter confused or off-balance. When a curveball gets executed correctly, the hitter or batter would think that it is a fastball so that he will swing too early. As a result, he cannot hit the ball and get a strike.
- Knuckleball
The knuckleball or the butterfly ball is a fantastic trick pitch. It goes easy on the arm, and if it is well executed, it is impossible to hit because it is too erratic. The ball is thrown without any spin to dive, dart, and flutter through the air. It is also slower than the other standard pitches, so it is difficult to know when you can hit it at the right time.
- Eephus Pitch
Rip Sewell developed the Eephus Pitch in the 1940s. Eephus is reportedly derived from the sound that most batters make when swinging then subsequently missing. The ball is thrown towards the air with a high arc to execute this. The result is it will drop through the strike zone. Because the ball drops vertically and the bat passes horizontally, the batter will have lesser time to think things through. The most probable result is that the batter will not make solid contact. If he does hit it, the ball will not go too far.
Some describe the Eephus pitch as throwing like a girl.
- The Screwball
This trick pitch is hard on the arm. From the name itself, the pitching motion requires a lot of spinning coupled with a fastball. Because there are many spins, it goes as fast as a fastball, but it has more breaks or curves. The direction is usually downward, making it difficult for the batter or the hitter to make contact with the screwball.