[Mr. K]

what is a knuckle-ball, exactly? I never knew

what is the benefit?

[The Free Engineer]

Knuckleball is a pitch wothout any spin.
A baseball thrown without spin is very difficult to hit because it will move randomly.

[shotgun]

https://youtu.be/EgmQV9sodUA

[FLNittany]

The baseball doesn’t spin and unpredictably moves all over the place. Catchers used to use larger catcher mitts to catch knuckleballers.

Wakefield was about as good as there was when it came to the pitch. He was un-hitable for awhile there.

[Governor Dinwiddie]

The trick is to throw a pitch where the ball doesn't spin. It is very unstable
and subject air drag which causes unpredictable behavor, which fools the batter.

[wbill]

Bob Uecker (semi-famous catcher) once said that the easiest way to catch a knuckleball was to wait until it stopped rolling, then go pick it up. 😁

A good knuckleball just kind of flutters up to the plate. No specific movement. Got to be near impossible to hit, I’d think.

[woodbutcher1963]

When Wakefield had control of his knuckleball it was almost impossible to hit. Then he would mix in his fast ball, which was only in the eighties. I remember watching one of the Yankees/Sox series and no one could hit his throws. If they did make contact it was typically an easy ground out. As a Sox fan it was great watching the Yankees great hitters going down one after the other.

He also seemed like a great guy off the field. He never said anything stupid. He was very well liked in Sox Nation.