How To Pitch
Throwing With Control As A Pitcher
Differs From Throwing As A Position Player
Pitching A Baseball Is A Real Task
Requiring Definitive Special Skills And Stamina
How To Pitch as a really super hard throwing of the baseball with accuracy and control as a pitcher is not the easy chore you might imagine.
The special skills and definitive capabilities for achieving true reality and pitching success requires some inherent gene laden talent and much hard work.
Any way you slice the apple the pitching corps is the prima donna group for any baseball club. This statement is not a reflection to signify the pitchers are a bunch of patsies to be mottle coddled but rather is indicative of the value placed upon their service for the team.
One of the oldest talked about and discussed items of baseball is an art called pitching and how to pitch baseball and the arms movement mechanics is cause for concern for every aspiring pitcher.
For the life of me do I know the scientific definition or proof to reiterate what what pitching coaches are saying when they mention or even emphasize using, "proper mechanics."
I have heard the ole saying all my growing up do not throw with your arm throw with your whole body? Duh! saying and doing are two horses of different colors.
When we are talking mechanics are we harking back to that ole saying of use your body or are we trying to say, "bring the throwing wing straight overhead or fling it slightly sidearm or make the biggest complete circle overhead as possible?" Is this mechanics?
The young aspiring fireballer needs to hear some specifics on this mechanics jargon from really good pitching coaches even poor novice Dad is just hanging around the ball field hoping to find this fellow with the knowledge of "Mechanics."
Since pitching and hitting is the real essence of what it takes to be a winning baseball team it gets scrutinized from every angle imagined.
The disagreement usually boils down to this,"Which is of the most importance to the success of maintaing a legacy of winning teams in baseball Pitching or Hitting?"
To tell the hard to admit truth of the matter during all of my early years of playing and enjoying the game of baseball Hitting got my vote on this issue. However, years and a little more unbiased thought on the matter it appears Pitching might be the winner.
Pitchers get the nod as a very special breed of cat for they get the job done where the hitters get the accolades and the media attention.
But of more importance to all players and those young aspiring pitchers the most concern is How to pitch baseball?
The special how to pitch baseball skills needed by a pitcher overtaxes and takes to the limit the capacity and capability of his pitching arm to perform at the threshold of its limitations.
The performance tactics used by a pitcher stretches his throwing arm muscles, tendons, nerve endings, and every bone joint from his fingers, wrist, elbow, shoulder rotator cuff and every major muscle group of his abdomen, his shoulder, his back and on down into his legs on every pitch.
Shoulder Rotator Cuff: Baseball players and fans alike have heard this term mentioned many times but had not the foggiest idea or visualized what it was.
Now you have it.there at the top of the arm (humerus i:e upper arm bone) at the shoulder joint is a clasp of muscle and tendon which causes or allows the shoulder to rotate. The rotator cuff can become injured by significant over stressed pressures causing a tear at the rotator cuff.
Beware for we ask much of our pitching corps by allowing them to exert to the maximum human body limits several body parts in the performance of their job giving way to how to pitch baseball.
Thus our hope is that our pitchers make it as difficult as possible for hitters not to get a good solid lick on little white baseball.
If you have a feel for the importance of how to pitch being attached to the pitching group based on performance of body stamina we will move on to the real how to pitch baseball actions. Pitchers and pitching coaches are paid handsomely to ply their trade for they are the creme-de-le-creme of the uniformed players all of the how to pitch baseball group.
Pitching or having the natural ability on how to pitch baseball instinctively as a cracker jack pitcher is in some measure related to the bodies biological genes in my estimation.
A taller long armed pitcher has a distinct natural how to pitch baseball capability advantage in throwing a baseball with terrific velocity which we normally refer to as pitching speed.
You might rightly challenge this but from a pure physics studied point or perspective the taller long armed pitcher has the mechanical advantage we know as leverage.
Visualize the simple action of motion whereby the travel time or speed is generated with much easier rotation of a large wheel than a small wheel. A small wheel must work much harder to travel a given distance at a much greater disadvantage of trying to keep up with the larger wheel.
Now visualize a longer armed pitcher standing on the pitching mound taking the ball from his glove rocking backward while extending his arm to the max length then coming over hand with his arm extended until reaching the point for release of the ball to home plate.
A pitchers teammate with an arm reach shall we say 2 inches shorter does the same pitching motion. Which pitched ball do you think is released with the best possible travel distance speed advantage leverage or wheel sized advantage?
This scenario is given to point out to all pitchers no matter the arm reach advantage the principle of leverage of making the largest arc possible no matter what the arm length will provide the most and very best advantage for pitching the baseball to home plate with speed and the best velocity.
To maximize the velocity using this principle of leverage there is a simple little extra action needed at the moment of release of the ball. How to pitch baseball with some additional speed is the forward or downward snap of the cocked wrist just at the final release point as the ball rolls or departs from the finger tips.
The advantage of pitching speed produced with the largest arc of arm extension and added zip with the wrist snap applies to the function of pitch velocity or speed.
We must in addition to pitching speed have an abiding concern toward mastering the control or placement of travel of the pitched ball. Home plate has a physical dimension width of seventeen (17) inches.
A pitcher stands sixty and one-half (60.5) feet from the front edge of the pitching rubber to the front edge of home plate. We will not even get into this high and low of the strike zone which amounts to a window roughly (17 inches by 34 inches).
Ole shoe to put that little white baseball across that plate streaming past the hitter yet crossing that 17 inch home plate is a real task. Yet we expect our pitcher to do it as a matter of routine.
It is done so consistent with top flite ace pitchers to the tune of them making this how to pitch baseball thing look easy but never doubt they have paid the price of practice making perfect seem routine.
What are the things which allows this to happen, it is many factors, one of which has been mentioned earlier is that the biological genes when combined with excellent athleticism never hurts.
Conditioning with extensive relentless pitching practice and more practice always using proven mechanics of throwing techniques in perfect harmony with a natural rhythm and control of body movement.
The best advice a pitcher might ever receive is this, "Never aim the pitch,let your natural practiced body control and movement turn the ball loose on every pitch as if it is a routine action."
Practice is the application which allows every pitch to be a miracle of control and shave the fuzz from the peach or to paint the edges of home plate.
Sandy Koufax is recognized as one of the premier pitchers. The last five years of his career (1962-1966) Koufax was as dominationg as any pitcher ever had been or would be.
He bam boozled National League hitters, going 111-34 and leading the league in ERA each of those years. It is an amazing story of how his career turned from so so to being Super Star quality.
Here is the magical wisdom and formula behind this amazing feat.
"Why not have some fun today? Don't try to throw so hard,and use more curves and change-ups."
This sage advice provided in a passing comment of a catcher to his battery mate on how to lighten up and also suggesting how to pitch baseball is the best advice any pitcher could ever receive.
Control pitching and being in control of every element for the natural delivery of every pitch and putting the ball with a smooth and natural precision release of the ball into or near the strike zone is an absolute must.
The natural swinging or winging motion of the arm and leg kick with smooth body action to deliver and release of the baseball should be a reflex borne from practice and more practice without ever trying to aim or place the throw.
It would be better to throw it over the backstop by turning it loose rather than to try aiming the pitch. You are of no value to your team as a pitcher if your pitch requires aiming of the throw and is not the natural release of the pitch.
Two key elements a pitcher should tuck safely and securely in their mind set and use constantly in their pitching repertoire is (1)the mechanical advantage of leverage for speed (2) practice practice and practice until the control of every pitch is a natural repetitive body motion.
No other positions of defensive play out on the diamond requires the constant repetitive stress of throwing the baseball as is required of our pitchers.
It is this strain of both the body and mental one pitch after another extending to the utmost limits the capabilities to fire the baseball while confusing or over powering hitter after hitter which is so taxing on the pitcher.
Like all of baseball there are volumes upon volume of notes articles and teaching on the subject of pitching. To learn the better or best techniques of how to grip the ball or how to release from your fingers and such to throw the multitude of different pitches should be covered by better coaches and experts of this subject.
Now shall we get into some of the mechanics and understand some physics about this pitching of the baseball.
Here are some of the basic how to pitch baseball pitches you will so often hear the game broadcaster or announcer refer to during the game. A pitcher with total command of these basic pitches and is also the master of controlling every pitch then he knows how to pitch baseball.
How to pitch baseball is the sum total of a pitcher attaining the skill level to effective control every pitch to reach its intended spot or target. Here is that sum total CONTROL.CONTROL.CONTROL
The above baseball throws are the normal arsenal of pitches used by most pitchers. If you would like to know about the famous blooper pitch (or you could call it the fans giggle maker) click here Bloopers.
How about how to pitch the mexican jumping bean or the dance of the butterfly click here Baseballs Knuckleball Pitch.
As you leave How To Pitch you are invited to check on our coaching clinics offer.
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"Throw me hard and pitch me true but get me across that plate without getting hit"
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