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Offspeed

Niche

Vulcan Change (Split-Change)

aka vulcan change · split-change · Spock change

Named for the Star Trek hand sign. You wedge the ball between your middle and ring fingers to make a 'V,' which kills spin and makes the ball tumble and drop. It comes in slow off fastball arm speed and acts a lot like a splitter.

Schematic baseball cover. This pitch has no filed seam geometry yet — the grip and shape below are sourced in words, not measured here.

The grip

Wedge the ball deep between the middle and ring fingers so it forms a 'V' (the Star Trek Vulcan salute), rather than between the index and middle fingers as a forkball does. The pitch traces to reliever Joe Nelson.

What it does

Thrown with fastball arm speed while pronating the hand (thumb down) to generate downward break; the wide-finger wedge lowers spin, giving it more tumble and drop than a circle change and a look close to a split-finger.

What it really is

A split-change relative to the changeup family that behaves like a split-finger; named for the V-shaped Vulcan-salute grip, with the ball seated between the middle and ring fingers instead of the splitter's index-and-middle placement.

Who throws itJoe Nelson (associated with originating and popularizing the grip).

Basic file

This pitch has a sourced one-line grip and movement and an honest explanation — not yet a filed specimen with authored grip geometry and a full craft chapter. A fuller breakdown is coming. Sourced, not corrected.