How to Use off-speed in a Sentence

off-speed

adjective
  • The 21-year-old infielder laid off two off-speed pitches outside the strike zone to get ahead and then jumped on the center-cut heater.
    Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 4 Apr. 2023
  • The fact that Chapman’s secondary off-speed pitch runs that fast is impressive enough, though.
    Shawn McFarland, Dallas News, 18 July 2023
  • Voegele’s command of his off-speed pitches held West Aurora up throughout the game.
    Paul Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 25 May 2024
  • Cabrera remains a solid strikeout pitcher, and his changeup is one of the best off-speed pitches in MLB.
    Jon Hoefling, USA TODAY, 18 Jan. 2024
  • The putting cups feature a soft-rimmed plastic that rejects off-line or off-speed putts, only accepting perfect shots.
    Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 7 Dec. 2023
  • With each pitch, Ohtani is acquiring data — about the break of a particular off-speed pitch, for example.
    Bruce Schoenfeld, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2023
  • For most of the first two months as a big-leaguer, Wiemer faced a gauntlet of breaking and off-speed pitches from right-handers, who were exploiting his proclivity to jump out at the ball.
    Journal Sentinel, 7 June 2023
  • And when everything has clicked, he’s been able to cover more parts of the plate and adjust to off-speed pitches, key factors during his auspicious four-for-10 start to Cactus League play.
    Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2023
  • Sabalenka understands that Jabeur, while known for her slices, her drop shots and her off-speed game, can also unload from the baseline when necessary.
    David Waldstein, New York Times, 13 July 2023
  • The cutter darts the other direction, giving him a weapon to throw in against left-handed hitters who had previously just looked for off-speed pitches away.
    Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2024
  • Coaches have also praised his secondary stuff, in particular his ability to throw his off-speed pitches for strikes.
    Nick Piecoro, The Arizona Republic, 24 Apr. 2023
  • In particular, Giolito likes where his off-speed pitches are.
    Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 23 Mar. 2023
  • In particular, Nelson has begun to land his off-speed pitches for strikes with more consistency, which has been a focus of his, according to Carlson.
    The Arizona Republic, 8 Mar. 2023
  • Hall, a Dartmouth commit, kept Lone Star batters off balance with corner-biting curveballs and off-speed accuracy.
    Greg Riddle, Dallas News, 27 May 2023
  • Indeed, after establishing his fastball earlier, Glasnow mixed in more of his off-speed pitches his second and third times through the Twins’ overmatched lineup.
    Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2024
  • And perhaps the most impressive part is that Sellers — who could recall throwing just five off-speed pitches Friday — did it almost exclusively with his fastball.
    Joe Freeman, oregonlive, 24 Feb. 2023
  • He's known for his unique delivery and ability to hit triple digits with his fastball, which is nicely complemented by an array of off-speed pitches that include a curveball and splitter.
    Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 21 Dec. 2023
  • Milton junior lefthander Tommy Mitchell had a breakout summer, adding velocity and improving his off-speed pitches en route to an Elon commitment.
    Matt Doherty, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Mar. 2023
  • Fastballs typically fly on a relatively straight trajectory, compared with off-speed stuff.
    Louisa Thomas, The New Yorker, 12 June 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'off-speed.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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