Hitting a changeup

[PSUFreak083]

Does anyone know how to hit a changeup or a good way to pick it up coming out of the pitchers hand? This is the one pitch that I always strikeout on.

[yankeesgiants]

Re: Hitting a changeup

depends on your hitting style. If your aggresive then take a pitch or two. I tend to get allot of opposite field hits myself so I just flick the ball the other way or swing defensively to foul it off to stay alive.

[Dogbarian]

Re: Hitting a changeup

I tend to guess fastball, so if the guess is wrong, and then the pitch is coming in pretty straight (looking like a fastball), then I'll slow my swing down or wait longer on it to connect with the change.

That is, if the pitcher can throw one and doesn't throw a second fastball type! Make sure you know what the pitcher can throw at you.

The only problem with this method is that the PCI gets smaller when you guess wrong, so you have less leeway to make a good swing. If you already have 2 strikes on you, use the contact swing to offset this.

If you don't have two strikes on you, and don't feel good about where the pitch is located, just take it.

One note with this, I use analog swinging, so I don't have to mess with up/down positioning, I just have to get the left/right correct, and with 2 strikes, I tend not to bother with that, and just swing for the middle. I'll foul off tough pitches that way.

[Mabster]

Re: Hitting a changeup

The only problem with this method....

The other problem with this method is that it requires the use of Guess Pitch. Many people don't use it and it has made them better hitters overall.

To the OP, join the crowd man there's lots of us in the same boat. Fastball/change-up combo is the best in the game. I've been playing this since 06 and still can't lay off the change-up. Sometimes you have to tip your cap and admit defeat. There is no discernible way to pick up a change out of the pitchers hand.

[chrishthomas]

Re: Hitting a changeup

I'll go along with Mabster on this...it's one of those things where video game baseball technology can't mimic real-life.

In real-life there are several things that may tip you off that a changeup is coming - one of which is that a lot of pitchers have to slow their arm motion down in order to realize the decrease in velocity...your best changeup pitchers are those who have mastered a grip that lets them keep their arm movement essentially identical to their fastball arm motion. In the game all pitchers have that ability.

Next, in real life you are dealing with a true three dimensional environment, but video games are based on using visual effect machinations to mimic three dimensions in what is really two-dimensions. This lack of true dimensionality makes it virtually impossible to visually process that the ball is covering less distance in the same amount of time as a fastball (i.e., arriving slower). I think this problem is even worse for those of us who use flatter viewing angles. I think using a view with more vertical pitch or horizontal shift, may enhance the visual effect of the ball moving slower. But on a flat view, that effect is almost entirely lost.

I wonder if using 3-d game play helps with this?

For those pitchers with 95mph and higher fastballs, it becomes incredibly difficult, so just take it with a grain of salt. If you prepare yourself to react quickly enough to catch up with their heater, then you are going to jump out in front of most changeups. The best advice I can offer you, coming from someone who doesn't use the guess function, is to watch for patterns in pitchers. If you are absolutely being shredded by their changeup, then get to know when they like to throw it, and be prepared to sit back and wait on it. The trade off is that if they throw you a fastball you probably won't get good wood on it, most likely will be late, and may be lucky just to foul it off and wait for another pitch.

[nomo17k]

Re: Hitting a changeup

IMO change up is too effective in the game... There aren't really many visual cues to distinguish between fastball and change up. In real life there are a few ways in which pitchers give us clue.

[Black59Razr]

Re: Hitting a changeup

Don't think you are the only one that can't hit the changeup. In TheShow, its the hardest pitch to read.

The effectiveness of a real life changeup soley depends on the pitcher's arm speed. It is very hard to accuratly throw a 95mph pitch and an 85mph pitch with equal arm speed and accuracy.

In TheShow, the arm speed for a changeup and fastball are identical. Therefore, every pitcher throws a perfect changeup. Pitchers with real life great changeups, like Johan Santana, are actually weak changeups in TheShow, because there is less than 10mph between their fastball and their changeup.

Other, no name pitchers, with over 10mph differential, are much more effective becaue the game does not reflect their slower arm speed.

[nomo17k]

Re: Hitting a changeup

Don't think you are the only one that can't hit the changeup. In TheShow, its the hardest pitch to read.

The effectiveness of a real life changeup soley depends on the pitcher's arm speed. It is very hard to accuratly throw a 95mph pitch and an 85mph pitch with equal arm speed and accuracy.

In TheShow, the arm speed for a changeup and fastball are identical. Therefore, every pitcher throws a perfect changeup. Pitchers with real life great changeups, like Johan Santana, are actually weak changeups in TheShow, because there is less than 10mph between their fastball and their changeup.

Other, no name pitchers, with over 10mph differential, are much more effective becaue the game does not reflect their slower arm speed.

For the same reason, those pitchers with 90+ heater and 67 mph knuckleball are killers... Still don't know how to hit them unless you sit on one...

Now if the Show can do the arm speed/angle with different pitches it would be very cool.

[Bahnzo]

Re: Hitting a changeup

IMO change up is too effective in the game... There aren't really many visual cues to distinguish between fastball and change up. In real life there are a few ways in which pitchers give us clue.

I would totally agree. About the only thing I can say is that with most pitchers (in the game) the change appears to float to the plate, especially if it has a lot of break on it. With an offset batting camera it helps a little....not much, but a little.

[Black59Razr]

Re: Hitting a changeup

...90+ heater and 67 mph knuckleball are killers....

You need to edit those pitchers; man. Make every knuckleball pitcher have a true knuckleball delivery, and lower their fastball to a realistic speed.

Also, I edit all the 5th starters with 94mph fastballs and 78mph changeups.

[moemoe24]

Re: Hitting a changeup

Guys, no one who throws a good change in the big leagues slows their arm motion down. That's what the grip does, it allows you to throw the ball slower with the same arm speed.

Some of you are saying in real life you can see it coming because arm speed is slowed down and that just isn't true. So in fact, a change up is just as hard to hit in real life as it is in this game.

[nomo17k]

Re: Hitting a changeup

Guys, no one who throws a good change in the big leagues slows their arm motion down. That's what the grip does, it allows you to throw the ball slower with the same arm speed.

Some of you are saying in real life you can see it coming because arm speed is slowed down and that just isn't true. So in fact, a change up is just as hard to hit in real life as it is in this game.

Yeah, but not everyone should throw excellent change right... It might not be arm speed, but if you can see different grip from fastball, that would be a tip... Could be seam... These are something currently not implemented in the Show, as a pitcher basically has the same delivery for every pitch.

[moemoe24]

Re: Hitting a changeup

Yeah, but not everyone should throw excellent change right... It might not be arm speed, but if you can see different grip from fastball, that would be a tip... Could be seam... These are something currently not implemented in the Show, as a pitcher basically has the same delivery for every pitch.

I agree with you on that point. There are too many pitchers in the show that throw good change ups. In real life there are only a handful of guys who throw one as an out pitch....Santana, Hamels to name a couple. This game has pretty much every starter with a straight change where as IRL most guys throw some sort of breaking pitch as a change....Roy Oswalt for example.

[abcabc]

Re: Hitting a changeup

wow nice freggin thread. YO SCEA, FIX this, lol. seriously...

i felt on the otherside of the coin, i can use and NEED to use every pitcher on my team who has a changeup, to mix the changeup in and use it not 1-3 pct of the time but like a changeup pitcher does... 33 % of the time, otherwise you can't keep the AI as off balanced.

[rymflaherty]

Re: Hitting a changeup

I agree with you on that point. There are too many pitchers in the show that throw good change ups. In real life there are only a handful of guys who throw one as an out pitch....Santana, Hamels to name a couple. This game has pretty much every starter with a straight change where as IRL most guys throw some sort of breaking pitch as a change....Roy Oswalt for example.

I was watching the Sox/Yanks game last night and Buchholz had his changeup working great and that was a topic of discussion. They were saying the same thing - that only a handful of pitchers have that in the arsenal as a put-away pitch and the majority of MLB pitchers can't effectively throw it for a strike.
I immediately though - You could have fooled me, because judging by The Show virtually every pitcher has a devastating changeup.

I'm starting to think there is a problem with the frequency of a lot of these pitches. I might have to start keeping track to see if that is the case, or if it just feels that way - but looking at the Sox pitchers last year, other than Buchholz the starters would throw a changeup between 6-10% and some relievers didn't even use the pitch......it sure seems like you see it a lot more than that in the game.