What made Fernando Valenzuela’s screwball so unhittable | Fernandomania @ 40 Ep. 7

, Mark E. Potts, Jessica Q. Chen and Steve Saldivar

July 1, 2021 7:30 AM PT

Only a handful of pitchers in major league history have thrown the screwball with regularity. Even fewer have mastered the pitch. But after the Dodgers’ Bobby Castillo taught Fernando Valenzuela how to throw the screwball in the winter of 1979, he went from a minor league prospect to a big leaguer in less than a year. Valenzuela would confound batters with the pitch throughout his 17-year career in the big leagues. Sherman Oaks Notre Dame High School baseball coach Tom Dill and former minor league pitcher Josh Goossen-Brown demonstrate what made Valenzuela’s screwball so great.

Erik Himmelsbach-Weinstein

Erik Himmelsbach-Weinstein is senior director/video for features, sports and long-form videos. The UC Berkeley graduate has been an editor at Spin, Los Angeles Reader, Orange Coast and other publications. His work as a documentary writer and producer has appeared on VH1, ESPN, Food Network, Biography and TLC. His short story, “Fried Chicken,” was included in the anthology “Another City” (City Lights, 2001). He started his career on The Times’ prep sports desk.