Adam Folkard is the hardest-throwing pitcher you’ve probably never heard of.
Folkard, 24, unleashes a softball from a fastpitch windup at a top speed of about 90 mph, or the average speed of a major league pitcher’s overhand fastball.
He’s one of the leading athletes in Australia, winning international pitcher of the year and sportstar of the year honors. He’s been so dominant, in fact, some observers say recent rules changes by the International Softball Federation were aimed at evening the international playing field by outlawing Folkard’s crow-hop style.
In the United States, though, Folkard can go largely unnoticed. He and fellow Australian Nick Shailes, his teammate with the No. 1-ranked Jarvis Ontario Travelers, have spent their summer mostly in anonymity — in Erie, where they’re living with fastpitch star Bill Hillhouse.
Folkard and Shailes, 26, now are preparing for the July 30-31 Ed McCormick Invitational, which will feature eight of the sport’s top-ranked teams and many of its best players. ** Folkard can’t pitch in international events such as the International Softball Congress worlds Aug. 14-20 in Moline, Ill.**[Editor’s note: correction below], but he can compete for his club in events such as this one.
While fastpitch lacks the fame and fortune of professional sports, Shailes wouldn’t trade it for anything. Click here for complete story and photo (nice one of Shailes, Hillhouse and Folkard)
** Editor’s note: Correction: (From Bill Hillhouse)
There was an error in the article about the Erie PA tournament regarding information regarding Adam Folkard… he CAN and WILL pitch in the ISC tournament in Moline. The editor’s mistake was confusing ISC and ISF tournaments and he wrote to me to apologize, offering to make a correction online and in print. But since my email has EXPLODED with people asking about this, I thought I’d better send a correction for masses.
Click here for our earlier post on the Erie Tournament, with schedule of games and more.
Article states Folkard cannot pitch in ISC this year. Pretty funny, wonder where they got that information?
Eric
They obviously got that part of the story wrong.
Editing error, I’m told. (they were referring to the earlier stories about the ISF pitching rule….). He will be in Moline…
From Bill Hillhouse:
There was an error in the article about the Erie PA tournament regarding information regarding Adam Folkard… he CAN and WILL pitch in the ISC tournament in Moline. The editor’s mistake was confusing ISC and ISF tournaments and he wrote to me to apologize, offering to make a correction online and in print. But since my email has EXPLODED with people asking about this, I thought I’d better send a correction for masses.