Slider

In baseball, a slider is a pitch halfway between a curveball and a fastball. When pitched, the slider breaks laterally and down, with more speed than a curve ball but less speed than a fastball. The break on the pitch is shorter than that of a curveball. The release technique of a slider is between a curveball and a fastball. The slider is similar to the cutter, a pitch which is thrown as a fastball, but differs in the sense that a slider tends to be more of a breaking ball.A notable slider is thrown by John Smoltz which comes in looking like a strike and then breaks out of the strike zone.Another notable pitcher who throws a slider is hall of famer Rollie Fingers who used the pitch to win a Cy Young award in 1981. [http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers/detail.jsp?playerId=114129] [http://www.popularmechanics.com/outdoors/sports/1283161.html?page=3 "The Mechanics Of A Breaking Pitch"] , "Popular Mechanics", April 1997. Accessed July 6, 2007.]

Improper throwing while pitching sliders is associated with pitching injuries and slider pitchers experience injuries at a slightly increased rate of other pitchers.

History

The innovator of the slider is debated, but some credit Charles Albert Bender as the first to use the slider, then called a "nickel change", in the 1910s. [http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/wmh/pdf/spring04.pdf "WISCONSIN Magazine of History"] ,"Wisconsin Historical Society Press", Spring 2004 issue. Accessed July 8, 2007.] Bender used his slider to help him achieve a no-hitter and win 212 games in his career. [ [http://www.baseballhalloffame.org/hofers/detail.jsp?playerId=110850 "National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum: Hall of Famer detail"] ,"National Baseball Hall of Fame". Accessed July 8, 2007.] Bender was the first pitcher to win six World Series games.

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