In 1994, Tony Scalzo, Joey Shuffield, and Miles Zuniga, formed Fastball in Austin, Texas. Shuffield and Zuniga first played together in a band called Big Car. After a stint with another group called Wild Seeds, Shuffield introduced Zuniga to Scalzo, w

In 1994, Tony Scalzo, Joey Shuffield, and Miles Zuniga, formed Fastball in Austin, Texas. Shuffield and Zuniga first played together in a band called Big Car. After a stint with another group called Wild Seeds, Shuffield introduced Zuniga to Scalzo, who had played in a band called the Goods in Orange County, California. The trio decided to form their own band, and began playing around the Austin area.

When they first started out, the band tried out several names, such as Star 69, Magneto, Magneto USA, and Starchy, before finally deciding to adopt the name Fastball. They share the name with the group's favorite pornographic film. "It's a typical porno movie," Zuniga told Rob Brunner in Entertainment Weekly, "but it's about baseball. It's like a really raunchy Bull Durham."

Fastball quickly built a strong following in the Austin area, and created a regional buzz. As a result, a local journalist spotted them, and suggested that Hollywood Records check them out. They did, an