When my oldest daughter was a sophomore in high school, the senior boy across the street played on the varsity baseball team. His family knew I loved baseball, so they invited me to attend a game. What none of us knew then was that the junior starting pitcher that day would become one of the great stars of his generation, Max Scherzer. At the game, I saw several people behind the home plate backstop with “jugs” radar guns, measuring the speed of this young phenom’s pitches. It was a mismatch throughout as the opponent’s hitters would shake their heads returning to the dugout with another strikeout. Max could really throw “smoke”.

A fastball has always been the most common pitch thrown by a baseball pitcher. In addition to being called smoke, an overpowering fastball has been deemed “heat”, “gas”, and even “cheese”. There are different types of fastballs. A four-seam fastball is when a pitcher places his fingers across all four seams of the baseball with his thumb to the side. A lot of hurlers use it to get ahead on the count as a first pitch or often to get a much-needed strike when the count is 3-0. A four-seamer tends to rise upward and is typically thrown at the highest speed of any pitch in one’s arsenal.

A two-seamer, by contrast, is when a pitcher grips the ball with their index and middle finger parallel to the seams instead of perpendicular to them. The ball tends to sink since you are throwing it with more of a downward motion. It’s a great pitch with runners on base, especially first, because the sinker often causes batters to hit ground balls resulting in double plays. Nowadays, you often hear baseball broadcasters talk about “cutters”. It’s thrown with a four-seam grip but slightly to the side of the ball. A cutter is not thrown as fast as a four-seamer but its spin causes more movement at the plate.

MLB history has had a full plate of fastball flamethrowers. Two of the legends had some pretty cool nicknames. Walter Johnson, who played his entire 21-year career with the Washington Senators (1907-1927), was known as “Big Train”. Among his baseball accomplishments, Johnson is the all-time leader in shutouts (110), led the American League in strikeouts for 12 seasons, and is fourth all-time in complete games (531). Big Train could blow it by you. I recall several years ago visiting a small baseball museum in Van Meter, Iowa, the home of Bob Feller. Among his nicknames were “Bullet Bob”, “Rapid Robert”, and “the heater from Van Meter”. The museum shared the story of this Hall of Fame pitcher for the Indians (1936-1956) who led the AL in wins six times and in strikeouts seven times. Stan Musial deemed him the “fastest and best pitcher I ever saw”.

Growing up, my pitching hero was Jim Maloney of the Reds. He was one of the hardest throwing pitchers in the 1960s, a decade that included fireballers Sandy Koufax, Juan Marichal, Bob Gibson, and Ferguson Jenkins. One of my keepsakes is a Maloney autographed baseball bat. Not only could he bring the heat, but he could hurt you at the plate as well. And in the next decade, the 1970s, the fastball that every MLB hitter feared was thrown by J.R. Richard, who starred for the Astros. He was a dominating presence on the mound at 6’8”. Johnny Bench found him to be the toughest pitcher he ever faced.

More recently, two names stand out, Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens. The “Ryan Express” was just that, a pitcher who consistently threw fastballs clocking over 100 mph well into his mid-40s. His 28-year career set all kinds of records – 5,714 strikeouts, a lifetime batting average against of .204, 11-time strikeout leader, and 7 career no-hitters. Clemens, who played 24 MLB seasons mostly with the Yankees and Red Sox, also had a remarkable career. In 1986 and 1996, he struck out 20 batters in a single game. He finished his career with 4,672 strikeouts, third all-time.

It’s impossible to go through the list of fastball aces without mentioning a couple relievers. I guess it starts with Mariano Rivera, who starred for the Yankees for 19 seasons (1995-2013). Rivera’s out pitch was his 95 mph cut fastball, one of the toughest pitches to hit in baseball history. It paved a path to his MLB career leading saves (652), games completed (952), and the only player to be elected unanimously into the Hall of Fame. Another reliever, Aroldis Chapman, who has starred for the Reds, Yankees, and other teams, is the hardest throwing closer ever. The “Cuban Missile” is still active, but among his accomplishments to date is that he struck out a batter in 40 consecutive relief appearances. In 2010, he recorded the fastest pitch officially recognized by the MLB at 105.8 mph.

Pitching today is all about speed. Over the last 20 years at first glance the trend was subtle for the average MLB 4-seam fastball – 92 mph (2008), 93 mph (2015), and 94 mph (2023). It’s now exploding. Right-handed pitchers are averaging 95.2 in 2026, and right-handed relievers are at 95.6 mph. The Mets’ Marcus Semien said: “Definitely expecting anybody you’ve never heard of to throw a 95-plus.” Jacob Misiorowski, the Brewers’ ace at just 24 years old, is averaging 100.5 mph this year, up from 99.3 mph as a rookie.

During the 2012 season, I happened to be at a restaurant in the Banks close to Cincinnati’s Great American Ballpark when a red sports car pulled up in valet with the license plate 105 mph. We all knew who would be stepping out of the car, Aroldis Chapman! If you happen to be at a restaurant near Milwaukee’s American Family Field someday soon and a car pulls up with the plate 110 mph, you’ll know that Mis is dining with you.

Until next Monday,

your Baseball Bench Coach