I've had a busy fall with end of season workouts. I have been a proponent of using the fall to better prepare you for the next baseball season. There is so much you can take from identifying what your weaknesses are after looking at the past season and starting NOW to change what needs to be corrected.
One thought I want to pass along to all of you who read this is to use each bullpen session and each pitch during that session as another step to success and improvement. No detail is too small when it comes to being the best you can be. Take each pitch seriously, that is, think about what you want to accomplish with the pitch and if it's not a success, think about what adjustment needs to be made and continue the process for the next pitch.
The most important pitches are the first 20-30 you throw. I'm talking about the very first, as you are loosening up. By the time you are on the rubber and ready to have your catcher crouch down for a pitch you may have already defeated yourself by developing a poor feel or rhythm for that session. Start with the very first toss and throw it for a strike. I frequently say to my students use "super slow motion" when you start. This will make you balance and think about what you are doing more easily. Start out at 25-30 feet, do not concern your self with speed, only location. Split the catcher down the middle, hitting his glove in the middle of his chest. Once you feel the comfort of hitting your target with every pitch you will get warm, confident, and comfortable. A comfortable pitcher is an effective pitcher. There is no excuse for not throwing a strike as you are warming up.
Look for more talk about the importance of the first 20-30 pitches in my newsletters and in the video library at www.pitchingeasy.com
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Quick Pitching Tips For You/No Better Deal Anywhere
I've been doing pitching lessons for over 24 years, really ever since my playing days ended. What started as helping out a few family friends on a weekend afternoon has transitioned into
a vocation that I am fortunate to have found.
BUT I am a victim of my own success! The demand for individual instruction and guidance has been overwhelming and while I am grateful for the support of thousands of young players over the years, I have been searching for the ultimate teaching tool which will enable TENS OF THOUSANDS MORE to gain the CONFIDENCE OF A WINNER!
For the cost of less than one 30 minute lesson you will have hours and hours of lessons at your fingertips any time and as often as you need! I am excited to provide the tips I have compiled from years of working with young players and listening to some of the greatest coaches in the game and put them on my website for you!
This will be the best investment of $21.95 you will make. I guarantee it! Thanks for taking a look and enjoy your road to pitching success!
a vocation that I am fortunate to have found.
BUT I am a victim of my own success! The demand for individual instruction and guidance has been overwhelming and while I am grateful for the support of thousands of young players over the years, I have been searching for the ultimate teaching tool which will enable TENS OF THOUSANDS MORE to gain the CONFIDENCE OF A WINNER!
For the cost of less than one 30 minute lesson you will have hours and hours of lessons at your fingertips any time and as often as you need! I am excited to provide the tips I have compiled from years of working with young players and listening to some of the greatest coaches in the game and put them on my website for you!
This will be the best investment of $21.95 you will make. I guarantee it! Thanks for taking a look and enjoy your road to pitching success!
Thursday, September 11, 2008
College Selections for High School Pitchers
I hear of high school seniors wanting to declare their college choice right now, or in the next few weeks. It seems like a trend but I'm not sure why. Yes, it will eliminate the stress of spending much of the school year wondering and interviewing colleges but its not necessary nor is it a sign of superiority between athletes if you do or don't declare in the fall.
Many pitchers benefit by showing their stuff off in the spring of their senior year. A good start in the spring may be all a college coach needs to see in order for that scholarship offer. Sure coaches tell you that the scholarship money may not be there if you delay in selecting a college but many times these coaches are competing with rival schools for the same player and try to get an edge by holding the money over your head. This is a decision that should be on your terms, especially if you have done your due diligence and handled matters in an adult and professional way. If you are not sure where to go and need more time, take more time!
Remember, the colleges who may not have shown the interest you had hoped for last season may be coming back to you because other recruits have fallen through. Don't take it personally, it's a fact of life you may as well learn now, opportunities come for different reasons and on many different circumstances, be prepared to take advantage! That senior baseball season may end up getting you the scholarship you deserve!
Many pitchers benefit by showing their stuff off in the spring of their senior year. A good start in the spring may be all a college coach needs to see in order for that scholarship offer. Sure coaches tell you that the scholarship money may not be there if you delay in selecting a college but many times these coaches are competing with rival schools for the same player and try to get an edge by holding the money over your head. This is a decision that should be on your terms, especially if you have done your due diligence and handled matters in an adult and professional way. If you are not sure where to go and need more time, take more time!
Remember, the colleges who may not have shown the interest you had hoped for last season may be coming back to you because other recruits have fallen through. Don't take it personally, it's a fact of life you may as well learn now, opportunities come for different reasons and on many different circumstances, be prepared to take advantage! That senior baseball season may end up getting you the scholarship you deserve!
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
More surgery
The news about the Mets great closer Billy Wagner was sad for me to hear. He has been a dominant pitcher for the past 10 years, probably one the hardest throwers in baseball if not the hardest. I always felt he was slightly unorthodox in his delivery. If you watch TV and see him in a game (or now on highlights only) you will see the short, quick and high take back before he uncorks the 95 plus fastball. It looked painful but how do you correct something that has given him so many years of success? The answer is you can't do it easily. The younger you understand what stress your arm is under the more apt you will be able to keep your mechanics fundamentally sound. Thus preventing serious injury.
A good pitching routine is critical to any young aspiring pitcher. As much as you will come across great coaches they may have trouble devoting the necessary time for you to stay at the top of your game. Do it yourself! Get your shoulder work done, do your sprints and core work....all on your own! Don't wait for someone to tell you what to do. They may forget and leave you without getting your proper work.
Drills (such as balance drills, control drills) should also be done as much as any strength and conditioning program. Don't let others control where you want to go....Keep working hard!~
A good pitching routine is critical to any young aspiring pitcher. As much as you will come across great coaches they may have trouble devoting the necessary time for you to stay at the top of your game. Do it yourself! Get your shoulder work done, do your sprints and core work....all on your own! Don't wait for someone to tell you what to do. They may forget and leave you without getting your proper work.
Drills (such as balance drills, control drills) should also be done as much as any strength and conditioning program. Don't let others control where you want to go....Keep working hard!~
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Website and Video Lessons
It's been a few months since my last posting. Much of the summer has been dedicated to getting the Pitching Easy website off the ground. I hope people take the time to look at the site. Having a library of pitching lessons at your disposal will, I hope, give those pitchers a stronger foundation.
As much as I love to work with pitchers in a one on one situation I feel this access to years of tips, drills, and fundamentals on a 24/7 basis is a vital finishing touch to all of the workouts and bullpen sessions.
It's a mental game and a mental grind out there on the mound. With the video lessons you can have a mental "self help" session any time.
Thanks to all of those who have joined the site and thanks in advance to all who will take a look in the future.
As much as I love to work with pitchers in a one on one situation I feel this access to years of tips, drills, and fundamentals on a 24/7 basis is a vital finishing touch to all of the workouts and bullpen sessions.
It's a mental game and a mental grind out there on the mound. With the video lessons you can have a mental "self help" session any time.
Thanks to all of those who have joined the site and thanks in advance to all who will take a look in the future.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Pitching by the Numbers
The ultimate goal for any pitcher is to have the ability to throw all of his pitches over the plate at any time in the count. It is attained by some, never reached by many. With command comes confidence and velocity. After all the more sure you are of throwing the ball where you want the more you can add a "little extra" on your motion.
I sometimes like to break down all of the pitches into percentages of force or effort. Keeping these numbers in mind may go a long way to controlling your pitches. It goes like this (and remember, these numbers are for you to think about, not for scientific discussion. If you think about the relationship between the percentages, you will get the idea):
Fastball: Throw it at 95% to 98% effort. Notice it's not 100% effort, that would take so much out of you over the course of a game. The one exception I would cite would be if you are a closer who is counted on to give it your best fastball in a pressure situation. In this case you know you are in for one batter or one inning, tops. So you are asked to give it your all. To use a track and field analogy, think of yourself as a miler rather than a sprinter. Keep a good rhythm and have enough for a good kick at the end of the race.
If you are a starter, you need to keep a comfortable pace and rhythm to your pitching so you can have enough energy to last a complete game. Keeping the effort level at slightly under 100% will enable you to have something left at the end of the game. Conditioning is a critical piece of this strategy. It takes a strong, well conditoned body to maintain the 95% over a whole game.
Change up: Throw it at 80% to 85% effort: The key to the change is to "relax" the body while maintaining the same arm speed. This is where you want to keep your delivery exactly like your fastball, just taking the edge off your power. A batter can't tell the difference between 95% and 85%, but you can. I listened to David Cone, former big league great, talking about the change up last week. His comments centered around the need to have your arm speed on the change up be faster than your fastball. Batters look at the motion, they are not trying to determine how much effort you are putting into your body. Keep everything looking the same, just with a little less power, and you will see a great change up which you can get over the plate consistently.
Curve Ball (not before age 14): Throw it at 85% to 90% effort: There really isn't much difference, contrary to many discussions, between your fastball and your curve. If you think about it you don't change much else except for the position of your hand through the delivery (a topic for another lesson).
The curve is more a "touch" pitch with a little bit of "power", you need arm speed to get the tight rotation and sharp break. This takes hours and hours of repetition in order to perfect this. You don't need to practice at full distance in order to get the "touch" on the pitch. Think of a basketball player working on his or her jumper. Hundreds of shots are necessary to get better and many of these players begin their reps by shooting from 2 feet away and moving gradually out, maintaining the form with each shot.
Slider (not before age 14): Throw it at 90% to 95%: Some pitchers have a better feel for the slider than the curve, I know I did. The slider is more of a "power" pitch with a little bit of "touch". Some coaches call it a power curve because you should be keeping your fingers and behind the ball more than bringing the fingers over to the front of the baseball as you would on the curve. Keeping the body slightly more relaxed than on the fastball will keep you in the mindset of putting some break on the pitch and not throw it so hard that it doesn't break but actually "backs up" over the plate. There is nothing easier to hit than a back up slider. So keep your focus on a good release and not on the speed of the pitch.
Splitter (not before age 14): Throw it at 95%: Splitters can be a great pitch for a power fastball type pitcher. You need arm strength in order to throw a nasty one. I am hesitant to promote it to any young pitcher because they havent' fully developed physically and there can be a lot of undue strain on the elbow as you put that ball deeper than normal into the splitter grip. It should be thrown like your fastball with your fingers placed wider than your fastball and ususally not gripping any seams, which gives it less spin and caused the ball to quickly drop as it approaches the plate. The harder you throw the quicker it will dive and the more difficult it will be to hit. Stay with the straight change up for as long as you can before you go for the splitter.
Keep the numbers in mind as you practice and see if it helps your ability to master them all. Once you do, your stock will rise dramatically. Good Luck.
I sometimes like to break down all of the pitches into percentages of force or effort. Keeping these numbers in mind may go a long way to controlling your pitches. It goes like this (and remember, these numbers are for you to think about, not for scientific discussion. If you think about the relationship between the percentages, you will get the idea):
Fastball: Throw it at 95% to 98% effort. Notice it's not 100% effort, that would take so much out of you over the course of a game. The one exception I would cite would be if you are a closer who is counted on to give it your best fastball in a pressure situation. In this case you know you are in for one batter or one inning, tops. So you are asked to give it your all. To use a track and field analogy, think of yourself as a miler rather than a sprinter. Keep a good rhythm and have enough for a good kick at the end of the race.
If you are a starter, you need to keep a comfortable pace and rhythm to your pitching so you can have enough energy to last a complete game. Keeping the effort level at slightly under 100% will enable you to have something left at the end of the game. Conditioning is a critical piece of this strategy. It takes a strong, well conditoned body to maintain the 95% over a whole game.
Change up: Throw it at 80% to 85% effort: The key to the change is to "relax" the body while maintaining the same arm speed. This is where you want to keep your delivery exactly like your fastball, just taking the edge off your power. A batter can't tell the difference between 95% and 85%, but you can. I listened to David Cone, former big league great, talking about the change up last week. His comments centered around the need to have your arm speed on the change up be faster than your fastball. Batters look at the motion, they are not trying to determine how much effort you are putting into your body. Keep everything looking the same, just with a little less power, and you will see a great change up which you can get over the plate consistently.
Curve Ball (not before age 14): Throw it at 85% to 90% effort: There really isn't much difference, contrary to many discussions, between your fastball and your curve. If you think about it you don't change much else except for the position of your hand through the delivery (a topic for another lesson).
The curve is more a "touch" pitch with a little bit of "power", you need arm speed to get the tight rotation and sharp break. This takes hours and hours of repetition in order to perfect this. You don't need to practice at full distance in order to get the "touch" on the pitch. Think of a basketball player working on his or her jumper. Hundreds of shots are necessary to get better and many of these players begin their reps by shooting from 2 feet away and moving gradually out, maintaining the form with each shot.
Slider (not before age 14): Throw it at 90% to 95%: Some pitchers have a better feel for the slider than the curve, I know I did. The slider is more of a "power" pitch with a little bit of "touch". Some coaches call it a power curve because you should be keeping your fingers and behind the ball more than bringing the fingers over to the front of the baseball as you would on the curve. Keeping the body slightly more relaxed than on the fastball will keep you in the mindset of putting some break on the pitch and not throw it so hard that it doesn't break but actually "backs up" over the plate. There is nothing easier to hit than a back up slider. So keep your focus on a good release and not on the speed of the pitch.
Splitter (not before age 14): Throw it at 95%: Splitters can be a great pitch for a power fastball type pitcher. You need arm strength in order to throw a nasty one. I am hesitant to promote it to any young pitcher because they havent' fully developed physically and there can be a lot of undue strain on the elbow as you put that ball deeper than normal into the splitter grip. It should be thrown like your fastball with your fingers placed wider than your fastball and ususally not gripping any seams, which gives it less spin and caused the ball to quickly drop as it approaches the plate. The harder you throw the quicker it will dive and the more difficult it will be to hit. Stay with the straight change up for as long as you can before you go for the splitter.
Keep the numbers in mind as you practice and see if it helps your ability to master them all. Once you do, your stock will rise dramatically. Good Luck.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
12 to 6 Curveball - Sounds Great, But is it for You?
As young pitchers mature and get around the age of 15 there is a high interest in coming up with the "filthy" curveball. The one that will impress the head coach and also be the talk of the league. The overhand curve, the "12 to 6" breaker, is the hallmark for the great curve ball pitcher. Or is it?
Sure, if you have a directly overhand delivery you would love to master the overhand curve as a complement to the fastball and change. But what if you are a more common 3/4 arm delivery? Do you necessarily want the overhand curve with the 3/4 fastball? It may not be the right mix, even if the curve is a quality one. It takes a bit of common sense to see why.
All hitters at the higher levels of play are trained to pick up the release of the pitcher as quickly as possible. Most are taught to "box" the release point, or keep their eyes on the area of release, so they can pick up rotation of the ball sooner. The better the batter can read the pitch the better he can react and put the proper swing on or take the pitch if appropriate. As a pitcher you would like to mask your release as well as you can in order to put the hitter in as difficult a situation as possible. So if you are known to be a 3/4 arm delivery pitcher the hitters will be looking just out over your throwing shoulder for the release of the ball. So far this makes sense, right? Now a good 12 to 6 curve needs to be thrown overhand, in other words, its in a different release point. So if you throw your fast ball in one spot and your curve in another you are giving the batter an easy time of reading your pitches. Even with a very good curve you are against it because the hitter will have a chance to read it sooner. Every fraction of a second to a hitter is like an hour. Keep his reaction time low by throwing the curve and the fastball in the same slot with the same release point.
There is nothing wrong with a 10 to 4 (lefty) or a 2 to 8 (righty) curve if you are a 3/4 pitcher, as a matter of fact, if its thrown properly, it's coming at the hitter in two planes. In other words, it breaking both down and away (or in, depending on left or righty batter).
Now you may ask, "What if I can throw both fast and curve from both overhand and 3/4?" That would be great and if you can do that, go for it. BUT, remember you should have a number one pitching slot that you need to go to in pressure situations. If you are an overhand pitcher who will drop down occasionally for the fastball and curve that is effective, just remember you are an overhand pitcher and overhand is your best delivery. It's better to go down throwing with your best stuff in a tight situation. Many pitchers have second guesssed themselves by trying to be too tricky in the clutch and wind up disappointed in using their second best when it counted. Be ready to use your best when needed, you can better accept the results.
Throwing the curve takes repetition and patience. There is no shortcut for the curve, you need to find the best grip and a proper release for YOU and keep practicing. Don't let others try to change you unless you think it makes sense to try to change (i.e., you are struggling and not able to get the curve over the plate). Becoming a successful pitcher is a journey filled with turns and bumps. Keep your eye on the finish and learn from each outing.
Sure, if you have a directly overhand delivery you would love to master the overhand curve as a complement to the fastball and change. But what if you are a more common 3/4 arm delivery? Do you necessarily want the overhand curve with the 3/4 fastball? It may not be the right mix, even if the curve is a quality one. It takes a bit of common sense to see why.
All hitters at the higher levels of play are trained to pick up the release of the pitcher as quickly as possible. Most are taught to "box" the release point, or keep their eyes on the area of release, so they can pick up rotation of the ball sooner. The better the batter can read the pitch the better he can react and put the proper swing on or take the pitch if appropriate. As a pitcher you would like to mask your release as well as you can in order to put the hitter in as difficult a situation as possible. So if you are known to be a 3/4 arm delivery pitcher the hitters will be looking just out over your throwing shoulder for the release of the ball. So far this makes sense, right? Now a good 12 to 6 curve needs to be thrown overhand, in other words, its in a different release point. So if you throw your fast ball in one spot and your curve in another you are giving the batter an easy time of reading your pitches. Even with a very good curve you are against it because the hitter will have a chance to read it sooner. Every fraction of a second to a hitter is like an hour. Keep his reaction time low by throwing the curve and the fastball in the same slot with the same release point.
There is nothing wrong with a 10 to 4 (lefty) or a 2 to 8 (righty) curve if you are a 3/4 pitcher, as a matter of fact, if its thrown properly, it's coming at the hitter in two planes. In other words, it breaking both down and away (or in, depending on left or righty batter).
Now you may ask, "What if I can throw both fast and curve from both overhand and 3/4?" That would be great and if you can do that, go for it. BUT, remember you should have a number one pitching slot that you need to go to in pressure situations. If you are an overhand pitcher who will drop down occasionally for the fastball and curve that is effective, just remember you are an overhand pitcher and overhand is your best delivery. It's better to go down throwing with your best stuff in a tight situation. Many pitchers have second guesssed themselves by trying to be too tricky in the clutch and wind up disappointed in using their second best when it counted. Be ready to use your best when needed, you can better accept the results.
Throwing the curve takes repetition and patience. There is no shortcut for the curve, you need to find the best grip and a proper release for YOU and keep practicing. Don't let others try to change you unless you think it makes sense to try to change (i.e., you are struggling and not able to get the curve over the plate). Becoming a successful pitcher is a journey filled with turns and bumps. Keep your eye on the finish and learn from each outing.
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