A nice, slow eephus pitch is nothing to swing a bat at

Today’s question: Diamondbacks pitcher Zack Greinke throws a really slow curve ball that the announcers refer to as an eephus pitch. How did it get that name? An eephus pitch is also known as dead fish, float, balloon ball, parachute ball and several other colorful names.

It is a slow pitch with an absurdly high trajectory meant to catch the batter off guard.

In a game against the Yankees in 2008 Diamondbacks great Randy Johnson threw an eephus ball that was so slow it didn’t even register on the radar gun., according to the New York Times. And it was a strike.

History tells us the eephus was first thrown by Pirates pitcher Rip Sewell in an exhibition game against the Detroit Tigers in 1942. According to the “New Dickson Baseball Dictionary,” Tigers batter Dick Wakefield “started to swing and then he stopped, and then he swung again and almost fell down when he missed.

After the game. Pirates outfielder Maurice Van Robays called it an eephus pitch. “Eephus ain’t nothing,” he said.

As it happens, there is a Hebrew word pronounced “EFF-ess” that means “nothing.’ Whether Robays knew that or just made up a word is not clear.

If you poke around at espn.com you can find a picture of Sewell’s grip on his eephus pitch.

Because we are warned not to leave standing water because it will attract mosquitoes should we turn off a water fountain at night?

Mosquito eggs hatch in still water in 24 to 48 hours so I guess you have to take your chances.