13 ways to avoid "balking" on the pitcher's mound

Pitching from the stretch is difficult enough for most pitchers because they don't feel comfortable doing it. Add a runner on base, and you've got not only to focus on throwing strikes, but you've got to keep the runner from getting walking (or running) leads.

Here are 13 ways to avoid being called for a balk. Work on these tips in practice so that they become second nature, which will enable you to concentrate more fully on getting the hitter out in games.

1. Do not stand on the rubber without the ball or before you are ready to read the catcher's signs.
2. You can look over at first, and you can turn your shoulders toward first a little bit, in order to give yourself a better view, but if you make any sudden move at all, including twitching your shoulder, you have to throw there.
3. A fake throw to first is a balk, although you can fake throw to the other bases (but you must step toward second or third with your non pivot foot before faking, if your pivot foot is on the rubber). You cannot throw to an empty base unless a runner is going and you have him picked off. You can fake throw to first only if you first fake throw to another base (and you must step in the direction of the base you are first faking to).
4. You have to step with your non pivot foot in the direction of the base you are throwing to, before actually throwing the ball. In regards to first base, if you were to draw a straight line from the edge of the pitching rubber toward home, and then drew a 45 degree angle coming out from that line in the direction of home plate, any pick off attempt would require that your non pivot foot be on the first base side of that line. If it is not, you could be called for a balk.
5. Once you start your windup you cannot stop (i.e. you begin your windup, batter squares around to bunt, causing you to stop for a second - that's a balk).
6. If you throw to the plate while your pivot foot is off the rubber you have committed a balk.
7. If you want to step off the rubber after receiving the catcher's sign, or if you want to start over, or you want the runner to go back to his base - before you have begun your windup - step backwards off the rubber with your pivot foot, while dropping your hands down to your side.
8. If you use the windup, you cannot make your first step in the direction of first if right handed, you hav e to step backwards or at a 45 degree angle.
9. If you drop the ball or it slips out of your hand as you begin throwing, and runners are on base - it is a balk (if no runners are on base and the dropped ball crosses the foul line, it is a ball; otherwise it is called no pitch).
10. If your non pivot foot goes behind the rubber as you lift your leg into the balance position, you must throw to the plate
11. When starting from the stretch position one hand must be by your side (you cannot start with your throwing hand by your mit). When you begin from the stretch you must pause for a second after bringing your hands together before pitching. If you were to pause after bringing your hands together at the top of your chest, then pause again when your hands were lowered, that would be a balk. You must pause one time, and one time only, from the stretch. You do not have to pause when pitching from a full windup.
12. When you are not on the rubber, you are allowed to fake throw, walk toward, or make any other motion you want to force the runner back to the bag.
13. If you step back off the rubber with your pivot foot and then make a bad throw to first (or any other base), and it goes out of bounds, all runners are entitled to one base on the bad throw. If you throw to first while your pivot foot is on the rubber, and the ball goes out of bounds, the runners get two bases.

How to practice, develop, and maintain proper throwing techniques for a pitchout

When you know a runner is going to steal on the next pitch, you might want to try a pitchout. Usually the coach will put the signal on to do this. And, of course, the catcher must be involved. Good communication with him is key.

In theory, the pitchout seems easy. But if you've used the defensive strategy, you know it's not as easy as it looks. That's because it requires a slightly different pitching motion from your regular delivery. And many kids want to let up or "baby" the pitch, which actually makes it more difficult to execute properly.

That's why it needs to be practiced, on the side, in practice, while you're throwing your bullpens. This way, you're prepared when a coach asks you to perform it in game situations.

For a pitchout to be successful, several factors are important: A pitcher must deliver the baseball with a fastball grip to the plate slightly faster then his normal pitches (aim for a delivery less than 1.3 seconds), and the pitch must be far enough outside the strike zone to prevent the hitter from making contact with the ball. It also must be high enough to enable the catcher to get into a good throwing position.

On a pitchout, you're delivery should not be dramatically different from your regular motion, but the delivery will have some subtle differences including:

1. Instead of separating the hands and bottoming them out, you may want to lift your throwing hand into position in a manner similar to an infielder, as it'll speed up the time it takes you to get into a throwing position.
2. Instead of a more pronounced lead leg lift, you may want to "lift and place" your foot more quickly that you would in your regular delivery.

In the Chicago Cubs organization, we threw two or three pitchouts during the end of every bullpen session. Mix fastball, pitchout, fastball, pitchout -- just as you might have to do in a game.

Work on it.

Good examples of a proper cocked position

Jon Leiber

Beltran Perez

Roy Oswalt

Why are these pitching mechanics of the cocked position good?

• Head in the top center of the body, chest thrust out and shoulders pulled back for torque and a full range of motion.
• Lead elbow-shoulder AND shoulder-throwing elbow level and aligned to the plate. Both elbows are relatively the same height horizontally.
• Front shoulder closed to the plate; eyes, shoulders, and hips level and ready to rotate to square off to the plate.
• Hand high in the cocked position, fingers on top of the baseball, wrist extended back, forearm beyond a 90-degree angle from upper arm.
• Stride foot firmly planted and stable, toes pointed in slightly.
• Stride leg flexed, pivot leg (foot) beginning to roll over off the mound to release the hips.

How to throw a cutter like Mariano Rivera

How to throw a cutter: Usually you hold it like a fastball. The grip is a little bit off of center. Throwing it is like a fastball, and right here at about the release point, turn over your wrist.

The idea is, it's got fastball rotation, and at about 59 feet, it cuts into a righthander for a lefthanded pitcher. For a righthanded pitcher it cuts into a lefthander.

Why is Mariano Rivera's cutter so good? Because it's so late and so quick, and the rotation has such good fastball rotation. It looks fastball to a hitter because you can't see the rotation.

Everything you need to know about the Major League Draft

Today's guest post is from Jeff Spelman of Team One Showcase. The article originally appeared in Baseball Parent magazine, but it has been updated to include information about the 2007 MLB draft June 7 and 8.

Thousands of senior baseball players are looking forward with great anticipation and hope to the Major League Amateur Free-Agent Draft June 7 and 8. This year is the first that it'll be televised. Four or five seniors will become instant millionaires. Perhaps a hundred or so others will be very happy with the draft. All others will likely be disappointed because they were chosen late or not selected at all. Major league teams can make as many selections as they want.

In the last couple years, several teams bowed out in the 45th round while others went beyond 80 rounds. But the later a player is drafted, the less likely he is to sign.

Of 1,666 players drafted on average, approximately 780 were high school players. Of the number drafted, usually 225 to 250 high school players sign contracts.

What's best for you or your son?

Be realistic and look at the numbers. Pro teams thrive on players who think they will overcome the long odds against becoming a major league player. Actually only 5 to 6 percent of drafted players ever play a day in the major leagues. And about 40 percent of first-round draft picks never make it either. If your son chooses a pro career, he is at least significantly delaying if not giving up a college education.

Questions to consider:

• What's a degree worth, and how far will he be behind his peers if he enters the work force four years after they do? (Usually, people with college degrees make more than $1 million more in their "work life" than those who don't have a college degree.)
• If a high school player signs for a bonus of $100,000 (roughly fourth-round money), how long will it last?

Remember this: Uncle Sam claims 31 percent for taxes, leaving your son with $69,000. He may use $10,000 for a down payment on a car. That leaves $59,000. His minor league salary will be about $850 per month-during the six-month season only. So if he wants to live on $20,000 a year, he'll have to use his bonus money. At that rate, he'll use it up in four to five years. By then, he'll be out of baseball, still be making $15,000 a year in the minors, or possibly be in the major leagues.

On the other hand, major league teams do offer players entry into professional baseball at a younger age, which can translate into earlier high earnings and additional benefits. And although many college coaches disagree, Major League Baseball says the best baseball instructors in the world are available to your son.

How to deal with scouts

Always be honest and consistent. But remember, you do not have to give them direct answers to all their questions, For example, scouts commonly ask if your son wants to sign out of high school and how much money it would take to get him to sign. Don't give a figure or a range. Many parents simply respond, "My son would definitely be interested in signing if it's the right offer." Teams not only draft for talent but also for signability.

If you do NOT want your son to sign a pro contract out of high school and you let scouts know that, then be prepared for the fact that he probably won't be drafted at all. Players who have signed scholarships to top academic universities often go undrafted or get chosen later than expected because teams are worried about their signability.

If your son may be a high draft pick, you'll notice large numbers of scouts at his games late in the high school season, and a major league team's top scouts -- regional supervisors, crosscheckers, and even the scouting director -- will attend.

As a parent of a potential draft pick, try to keep your son from being distracted by all the hype. The only way he can enhance his draft status is by performing well on the field-and distractions can hurt his performance. Prepare your son emotionally for what might or might not happen in the draft. It's nice to dream, but you and your son need to be realistic. Always consider not taking a team's first offer. Many players earn more by holding out a week than they would have earned in a whole season had they taken the first offer. However, this strategy may have diminishing returns if the hold out lasts too long.

Decision time: Should you play college ball or sign a pro contract?

Deciding between college and an immediate pro career can be a difficult decision. There's no magic formula. Look at all your son's options, which may include a couple of years of college first, and discuss them with him. And enjoy the attention your son receives. It's a once-in-a-lifetime experience. So be sure you're prepared.

Good luck on June 7.

Great examples of how to stride

There are a number of factors that effect pitching velocity. How a pitcher strides is one of them.

The proper way for a right-hand pitcher to stride is with the side of his front foot facing the target and his toe pointing at 3B. This enables him to keep his hips closed throughout the "expansion" of the lower body off the mound and to the target.

A lefthander should stride with his tow pointing at 1B.

It's also important to stride out with the front foot low to the ground. This keeps a pitcher's shoulders relatively level.

Notice in the following pictures how each pitcher is striding toward the plate with the side of his front foot -- NOT his toe, which opens the hips too early.

Hideki Okajima (He's a lefty, so he strides with the side of his front foot facing the target and his toe pointed toward 1B.)

Hideki Okajima

Gary Majewski (He's a righty, so he strides with the side of his front foot facing the target and his toe pointed toward 3B.)

My former teammate, Ricky Nolasco

Curt Schilling

Carlos Silva

Kip Wells

How to throw a splitter or a split-finger fastball

A splitter is a fastball. I'm just splitting the seam. What you don't want to do is get under the ball and it doesn't break. It hangs. Executed properly it breaks down.

How to throw a slider

So you want to throw a slider? That's the one where at the end you really make an effort to get on top of the ball. You can call it a slider, a curve, a slurve. Sometimes a cutter is a slider. Usually you have finger pressure on your middle finger, across the seam or on the seam.

How to maximize pitching practice and bullpen sessions

Joe Janish from the blog "On Baseball" has posted some good tips on getting the most out of pitching practice -- from throwing bullpens to improving skill on the field. He draws upon his many years of experience as a baseball coach. The article's main points were as follows:

1. How a pitcher approaches his bullpens often directly correlates to his performance on the mound in games, regardless of the individual's skill level.
2. Whenever a pitcher takes the mound -- be it in a practice session, in the bullpen, warming up between innings, or in a game -- he must have a SPECIFIC plan and he must focus on executing or following through with that plan.
3. A pitcher who plans his practice ahead of time and focuses on its execution will be much better prepared come game time -- and will enjoy regular improvement in his pitching performance.

Five ways to improve pitching control

If you're a baseball coach, then you'll probably agree with me that there's nothing worse than when a pitcher can't throw strikes, when his pitching control is poor. Pitchers in the big leagues generally throw about 65% to 68% strikes. That's something your pitching staff should aim for every time a pitcher takes the mound.

Here are some common causes of pitching-control problems – and how to fix them so your pitchers can be more accurate.

1. Lack of concentration: The pitcher should pick up their target before winding up and not break that concentration during the delivery. Remind them of this during practices.
2. Throwing across the body: Draw an imaginary line from the push-off foot to the center of home plate. The striding foot should land four to six inches to the first base side of that line (third base side for left-handers).
3. Poor follow-through: Check the weight transfer, and see that the throwing hand finishes in the proper position. This may be exaggerated by having the pitcher touch their shoelace to ensure that they finish low.
4. Aiming the ball: The pitcher must not let up to get the ball over the plate. They should concentrate, reach back and throw hard. Control is only effective with good speed on the ball.
5. Rushing the delivery: Pushing off the rubber without achieving the balance position will usually result in the arm not coming through in time, and loss of rhythm. Be sure the throwing arm is extended back before the weight starts forward. Control will come with good mechanics and practice, and confidence will come as a result of using that control successfully.

[Baseball Canada]