Fastball Fastball The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thrown fastballs at speeds of (officially) and up to (unofficially). Pitchers who throw more slowly can put movement on the ball, or throw it on the outside of home plate where batters can't easily reach it. The appearance of a faster pitch can sometimes be achieved by minimizing the batter's vision of the ball before its release. The
Hour record (recumbents) (IHPVA) rules is held by Francesco Russo at . This was done outdoors on a large automotive test track in Germany. This represents the absolute furthest someone has pedaled in one hour under their own power. On July 7, 1933, a Frenchman, Francis Faure set a One-Hour record of 45.055 km (27.996 miles) that was faster than the conventional bicycle record at that time. This caused controversy in the world of cycling as Faure was considered a "second-category" cyclist, but his recumbent bicycle had effectively allowed him to win races against professional riders of the time. It became known that