Warren senior right-hander Peyton Balanag throws a pitch that can befuddle hitters.
“It’s really funny watching them notice it and hearing them say, ‘What is that?’” he said.
It’s a knuckleball. Balanag learned it from his father, Terry, who also pitched for Warren.
“When I was young and we would play catch, we would only throw knuckleballs, and I was always amazed at how he threw it,” Balanag said. “So he taught me to throw it. I can throw it with two, three or four knuckles, and I just let it slip out.”
But for Balanag, a College of Lake County commit who went 5-3 with a 2.50 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 50 innings in his second varsity season in the rotation in 2025, the knuckleball isn’t a novelty masking a lack of stuff. In fact, his repertoire has never been more effective.
“He’s grown more into his body and has changed a ton muscle-wise,” Warren coach Clint Smothers said. “His bullpens this year have been electric, and one thing he’s always done is pound the zone. He’s been sitting between 85 and 87 (mph) on his fastball and can throw strikes with four pitches.”
The Blue Devils (4-3), who have been playing in Marion during spring break this week, count on Balanag to do just that.
“Coach Smothers sees me as being very reliable and being consistent,” he said. “That’s the big part. Some of it is figuring it out as the game goes on, finding hitters’ weaknesses and knowing how to match that. But the bottom line is always being able to execute your pitches.”
Timing is important for Balanag’s knuckleball, more so than for other pitches. He has to keep an eye on the wind.
“If the wind is blowing toward left, it’ll usually take the ball that way,” he said. “It’s hard to throw accurately, so I usually try to throw it down the middle, and it takes it wherever.
“I’ve only given up one home run on it, sophomore year, when there was no wind. When it’s whipping in the air doing crazy stuff, they usually take it.”
Such attention to detail doesn’t surprise classmate Cooper Clark, a Cornell College commit who has caught for Balanag since early in their playing careers.
“He sees things almost like a general out there on the mound,” Clark said. “A lot of things he does go unnoticed.”
Balanag also has an uncanny ability to pick off base runners, an invaluable skill. Clark fondly recalls a summer league game when Balanag nabbed three runners in the first two innings.
“There have been so many times that he’s come into a game with the bases loaded just to pick a guy off,” Clark said. “His throws are so perfect, right to the inside of the bag — at first, second or third. He’s made my job so much easier over these years.”
Balanag is so proficient that he picked off a runner during Warren’s 3-1 season-opening win over Prospect by varying his breathing pattern.
It’s one more reason why Balanag feels confident as the Blue Devils try to contend in the North Suburban Conference this season.
“Overall, I just want to continue to develop as a baseball player and hopefully take that to the next level,” he said. “The goal is always to give the team a chance to win and hopefully win more games than last year.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter.
