GIF: Tyson Ross changeup

I often wonder, like I imagine many do, just exactly how Tyson Ross continues to stick on a Major League roster. Now I haven't done much research into Tyson Ross, but I know that he has had mixed results, and I figured that the mixed results coupled with a poor delivery would be his undoing. He then threw this one pitch, and suddenly it all made sense to me. Tyson Ross has the changeup that dreams are made of.

Andre Ethier is a good hitter. He normally does a good job of making hard contact, so when he is fooled badly by a pitch, it certainly stands out in its own right. The pitch moves towards the plate, and Ethier is thinking*, "oh wow, what a nice, straight fastball for me to hit." As he swings, he realizes that it is a changeup, and he has mistimed it quite embarrassingly. Then, to make matters worse, the pitch suddenly darts down and away from him, all of this while he has mistimed the pitch.

*This probably isn't true

What makes this pitch even more masterful, is that on the pitch before it Ross threw a 93-mph fastball to the same area. Ethier laid the pitch off for a ball, but the impact had been made. On the next pitch, Ross would throw him this earth-shattering changeup, and the course of history would be changed forever (or he just swung and missed, but I like my wording better).

This pitch is the true beauty of a good changeup. The batter believes he is getting a fastball, and he swings accordingly. The deception is masterful, and Tyson Ross is the magician talented enough to pull off a trick of this skill. On a night in which he threw just 4 2/3 innings, and struck out just two batters while walking three, he was able to throw one of the filthiest pitches we might see all season.

Since this post doesn't really have a theme or point that I'm trying to make, it will be hard to write a conclusion that is satisfactory, so here goes nothing. This pitch was really good, and you should watch it.