Baseball | 9/18/2025 3:14:00 PM
By
Paul Suellentrop
The kick changeup is the newest twist on baseball's toughest pitch to master. Changeups, most pitchers say, require endless repetition and experimentation to find the right grip and arm motion. Fooling the hitter with an 82 mph pitch that looks every bit like the 92 mph pitch is a masterpiece of muscle memory.
Wichita State's
Brady Hamilton went into the summer needing to add a changeup to his repertoire, he and pitching coach
Anthony Claggett agreed. Hamilton finished last spring with a promising stretch. Backing that up with an improved changeup seemed like the next step.
"My changeup has never been a great pitch for me," Hamilton said. "When I was talking with (Claggett) before the summer, he was like 'Go out there, talk to your teammates, talk to coaches, go find a changeup.'"
The Shockers open full practices on Friday with a scrimmage open to the public at 5 p.m.
Brady Hamilton
In July, Hamilton, a junior from Edmond, Okla., started learning the kick changeup in the Cape Cod League with Yarmouth-Dennis. The pitch, according to Yahoo Sports, was created in 2023 at Tread Athletics, a baseball training facility, by director of pitching Leif Strom. In May, an ESPN story described the pitch as a "changeup-splitter hybrid" used by three members of the New York Mets rotation.
"He knew he had to get another pitch that was an out pitch for him," said Michael Stanford, Yarmouth-Dennis pitching coach who performs that same job at Galveston Junior College. "It's a very feel pitch. He was able to use it as a chase pitch to lefties, and he was comfortable throwing it against righties. It's almost a knuckleball shape with the finger and that allowed him to create some different spin and increase some horizonal movement and add some depth to where it became pretty lethal."
Hamilton started on the changeup by using the team's Trackman technology, which analyzes the flight of the ball to show pitchers produces speed, movement and accuracy.
"Trying different grips, seeing different movements, seeing how stuff works," he said. "I came across that grip and that was the best movement and action out of all of them. Two days later, I was throwing it in a game. It's summer ball, so why not?"
The essence of the kick change is how the pitcher raises, or spikes, the middle finger on the ball. That finger then "kicks" the ball during the release to reduce the spin on the ball to create a difference in speed and movement as it reaches the batter. His previous attempts at a changeup produced a pitch too similar to his fastball.
"I take a two-seam grip, and I pull my middle finger up," he said. "I try to stay behind it like a fastball. I get a lot more depth on it and I'm able to kill spin, which is what I was struggling with. This is basically a cheat code to knocking spin off the ball, which is going to make it slower and have some more movement."
While Hamilton continues to refine the pitch, it helped propel him to a strong summer when accompanying his fastball, around 92-94 mph, slider and curve. He went for 2-1 with a 1.48 earned run average for the Red Sox in seven games. He struck out 22 and walked five – improving his control ranked as a top priority this summer. He started the Cape Cod All-Star Game and won the team's first playoff game by throwing 5 1/3 innings and allowing one run and four hits against Orleans.
"We've tried a bunch of different things with the changeup," Claggett said. "Grips, finger pressure, all kinds of different elements to find out what would work best. Like any guy going off to summer ball, you experiment with things, talk to new coaches and different players. That grip seems like it fits and works pretty well naturally for him."
Hamilton impressed the Yarmouth-Dennis coaches with his attitude and openness to coaching. He helped teammates, gave pitching lessons and kept things positive in the bullpen.
"Elite competitor," Stanford said. "This is the best of the best. He wasn't scared to put up a fight against anybody."
Claggett also likes other changes in Hamilton as he returns for his third season as a Shocker. As one of WSU's two returning pitchers, he is taking a lead in practices and in the locker room to acquaint newcomers with the program. Coach
Brian Green noticed improved arm speed, thanks to work in the weight room.
"I think he really found his stride about halfway through last year," Green said. "That continued when he went to the Cape. His body improved . . . that enabled him to be just a little bit faster and stronger."
Hamilton made a team-high 16 starts last season to compile a 2-7 record with a 5.38 ERA. He delivered two of his stronger outings in the season's final weeks as he focused on attacking the strike zone and limiting walks. On April 6, he held Charlotte to one run on six hits over five innings. On April 26, he limited USF to three runs and four hits, striking out eight with one walk. He ended the season with seven good innings against Memphis and holding USF to one run over for 4 2/3 hitless innings.
"He's carrying over some things mechanically and did a great job with his body over the summer," Claggett said. "All Brady needed was just good quality confidence. If he can continue good confidence, his talent can usually take over."
Hamilton's strong summer presented him with options to leave Wichita State for a school offering more money. He kept in touch with Claggett and coach
Brian Green and declined to enter the transfer portal. Since he is entering his draft year, he decided headlining the rotation at WSU, in addition to revenue-share money, was the smart move.
"I came here because I feel like this is a spot where I'm going to be able to throw a lot," he said. "I've got a good relationship with the coaching staff. I know they believe in me. The resources that Wichita, the school and the community, have put in me, that's a big factor. I called (Green) and said, 'I want to be on a good team.' That's the biggest thing to me. I think we've got that here."
That is the sentiment Green wants to hear as he builds a baseball team.
"We won a big recruiting battle there to keep somebody home," Green said. "It showed a lot about Brady, his perspective, his maturity, his take on his goals. He had an opportunity to go somewhere for more money. But he also knows he's got a home at Wichita State with a coaching staff that cares for him. He's got a chance to be a Friday night guy in his draft year. Brady honed in on his career."
Hamilton returned to Wichita State because he trusts the coaching staff. If he continues his improvement after a strong summer, the coaching staff will trust him and his new changeup on Friday nights next spring.
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.
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