Steven Richard Wright is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Wright played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, having made his MLB debut in 2013; he was an All-Star in 2016. He is known for his knuckleball pitch.
Wright in 2015
Wright with the Boston Red Sox in 2015
A knuckleball or knuckler is a baseball pitch thrown to minimize the spin of the ball in flight, causing an erratic, unpredictable motion. The air flow over a seam of the ball causes the ball to change from laminar to turbulent flow. This change adds a deflecting force to the baseball, making it difficult for batters to hit but also difficult for pitchers to control and catchers to catch; umpires are challenged as well, as the ball's irregular motion through the air makes it harder to call balls and strikes. A pitcher who throws knuckleballs is known as a knuckleballer.
Eddie Cicotte, who is sometimes credited with inventing the knuckleball
Tim Wakefield in his throwing motion, showing his grip of the knuckleball