Recognize Changeup?

[HozAndMoose]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I'm a sucker for the high fastball. The higher it is, the more difficult it is for me to lay off of it.

I can lay off a fastball right on the bottom of the zone. Give me one two feet above my head and ill push X as i tell myself not to swing.

[Gagnon39]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I can lay off a fastball right on the bottom of the zone. Give me one two feet above my head and ill push X as i tell myself not to swing.

Yes. This is me one-hundred percent. I have literally swung at balls two feet above my head after the ball hits the mitt. I watch the replay and can't help but laugh at myself.

[eF 5ive]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I recognize pitches by calling them before they hit the glove. If I don't do this in my head, I find myself just swinging. I usually take the first pitch, except with my 3/4/5 unless I'm facing an ace, then I'm actually just trying to take as many pitches as possible to get them out.

But IMO if you go from the first pitch and start mentally saying what the pitch is, I think your reaction and pickup of the pitch will increase.

[cardinalbird5]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

And it doesn't matter how well your reflexes, eye sight, TV, etc. all are...you are still going to have a hard time picking up sliders and changeups in this game. Like the user above mentioned, you can't read spin, so we rely on picking up trajectories then our brain deciphers that based on past experiences and that's how we recognize pitches.

For example: Curves.....so easy to pick up for me now. As soon as I see that initial loop, my brain just takes over instinctively. Every now and then it will freeze me when I am sitting on a fastball, but most of the time I can pick it up. Same goes for the 2 seamers, cutters, 4 seamers, etc.

The changeups are hard to read because it is coming straight at you and you can't see no difference in trajectory until it is too late, plus you can't pick up spin. This is why offset cameras help. It gives you somewhat of a depth perception.

Sliders......are just insane when thrown in the right spot. If they are thrown slightly low out of the zone they are very hard to pick up. If they are thrown inside or high and outside, you can pick it up.

[PhilliesFan13]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

Some changeups I have problems with. That low curveball in the dirt I can never lay off of though. Every time I know that pitch is coming I say to myself not to swing. Then what do I do? Swing at it!

[HozAndMoose]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

Some changeups I have problems with. That low curveball in the dirt I can never lay off of though. Every time I know that pitch is coming I say to myself not to swing. Then what do I do? Swing at it!

12-6 curve gives me major issues. Once i realize the guy is throwing it. I always try to wait on it knowing i can hit a HR if he leaves it up. Then it just always looks like its going to stay up so i swing and miss.

[nomo17k]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

What camera angle do you use? I think this might help me a bit
I wouldnt say i have trouble with changeups, but when the cpu throws a 55 ft curveball i swing at it thinking its a low FB lol

I cannot necessarily recommend one over the other, because by nature if you make a camera good for recognizing a certain pitch, it tends to become a worse view for others (breaking in the opposite way, for example).

I tend to use catcher offset or something shifted similarly, as it makes it easier to recognize inside pitch and harder for outside pitch, and I like the "platoon effect" of hitting against pitchers of the same and different handedness that the cam naturally introduces. But that view would make it harder to recognize sliders breaking away (which I prefer for realism purposes), so there is a trade-off there.

[Bobhead]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I don't bother at all to recognize pitch types, I just recognize their approximate speed and location
Just place your camera at an angle that lets you read approximately how quickly any particular pitch is coming in, and time its speed, and swing at the appropriate time.

Don't worry about identifying it.

This change might seem impossible at first but if you practice it I am confident you will find it easier than trying to "label" every pitch as it comes.

[cardinalbird5]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

Don't you use timing though?

[bellz666]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I'm a sucker for the high fastball. The higher it is, the more difficult it is for me to lay off of it.

It gets me every time.

[Bobhead]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

Don't you use timing though?

Nope. Zone hitting. I could and would never use timing.

[tanchl]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

I bet many a hitter IRL wishes they could recognize the change as well, lol. I threw my back out swinging at a change the other day. I hate the change and the high fastball. Other than those two pitches I am pretty much a mediocre hitter.

[NDAlum]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

It's easier to see it in real life than this game


Sent from my iPhone 5

[tanchl]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

It's easier to see it in real life than this game


Sent from my iPhone 5

And you would know!

[Jgainsey]

Re: Recognize Changeup?

The change up in this game can be tough to pick up on, but like Bobhead said, it's really more about pitch speed than actual recognition.

Obviously, you don't want to be sitting on the change too often, but if a pitcher is starting to abuse you with off-speed pitches, you definitely need to tweak your approach.

I usually look at the pitcher's repertoire first thing and say to myself, "Ok, I'm looking at 93mph for the fastball, and 84mph off speed".

I'll make note of the breaking pitches as well, but I'm not as concerned with pitch speed there, mostly because they are easier to pick up. From there, I usually take as many non-fastballs as possible to start. If it isn't up in the zone early on, I'm going to make the pitcher prove he can get his secondary pitches over for strikes.

If the pitcher then starts finding success, and relying more on a change up, I'm simply going to start working in more 80 something mph swings. I still relying heavily on my pitch location recognition skills, but if a pitcher is going to throw more off speed pitches, I probably need to be taking more slower swings, in theory.

This becomes harder to execute if a pitcher has a killer fastball, so if that's the case you may have to make slight compromises with your swing speed. Instead of working in more swings at change up speed you may have to split the difference and find a swing speed somewhere in between the fastball and change up.

All that being said, the biggest key for me is still strike zone recognition. The better you are at recognizing balls and laying off borderline pitches, the harder it is going to be for the pitcher to establish his pitches.

Be picky. Don't settle for pitcher's pitches if you don't have 2 strikes, and wait for stuff middle/up in the zone. Most pitchers will give you plenty of mistake pitches to work with if you're patient.