Actor and cultural icon Leonard Nimoy died at the age of 83 on Friday. So in small celebration of the man and in keeping with our stated mission, let's devote a few moments to the pitch Nimoy's Mr. Spock inspired: the Vulcan changeup.
The famous Star Trek purveyor of wisdom and equanimity had a very particular way of greeting others ...
Hello to you, as well. I find myself becalmed and open to suggestions.
Anyhow, that ... almost looks like a pitch grip! A pitch grip that affords sink and, when the ball is buried deep, deceptive velocity separation! Indeed, it became a pitch grip, much to the eternal bewilderment of Justin Verlander ...
Novelty act? Hardly! Among others, Eric Gagne -- he of the record 84 consecutive saves -- used the Vulcan grip to great effect and prospered because of it ...
These days, Ian Kennedy is known for going to the Vulcan on occasion. Then there's former big-league reliever Joe Nelson, who, while certainly not the best pitcher to throw the Vulcan, was perhaps the most devoted practitioner of same ...
(Image: Tampa Bay Times)
That, folks, is a Vulcan changeup grip. As the excellent Marc Topkin wrote back in 2009, Nelson kind of haphazardly discovered the pitch in junior college after converting from infielder to pitcher. Needless to say, things worked out on the pitching front, thanks in part to accidental pitching coach Dr. Spock.
Finally, here's Aroldis Chapman's slider ...
RIP, Mr. Nimoy, and thank you for your baseball contributions.
