Teaching And Incorporating Proper Pitching Technique

The most important aspect in pitching is throwing strikes consistently. In order to help young pitchers throw strikes, it's important to teach them how to play catch correctly. In other words, it's important to teach and incorporate proper pitching technique.

We have all admired how effortlessly Greg Maddux makes pitching appear. When in a groove, Maddux is so effortless with his mechanics that he merely seems to be playing catch. By aiding young pitchers in becoming simplified and effortless in mechanics, they will not only throw strikes more consistently, but also will develop confidence in their ability.

When evaluating a pitcher's mechanics, watch them warm up in a rather informal setting. While observing, look to see whether the following five principles of good throwing technique are being used:

1. Eyes are constantly on the target.
2. The athlete should be in a good goal post position, meaning both glove side elbow and throwing elbow should be as high as his shoulder.
3. The ball should be pointed back to allow for the rotation of the hips.
4. Glove side shoulder and foot should be pointed directly at the target.
5. Weight transfer and follow-through from post foot to glove side foot.

Pitchers seem to run into the most difficulty when applying the simple throwing technique in a pitching situation. Alleviate some of their anxiety by asking them to throw batting practice in the same way they play catch. Pitchers can experiment playing catch with the catcher in this batting practice setting.

When put into a live pitching situation, many problems occur in adding the windup. It is important, at this point, to stress that the windup does nothing to affect the eventual success of a pitch; however, it can be a reason for the failure of that same pitch. Try to simplify the delivery of any pitcher who has difficulty throwing strikes.

-Excerpts of this article contributed by pitching coach Terry Mularski of Westmoreland County Community College (PA).

Fundamentals Of Baseball Pitching: The Four Key Components To Success At The Youth Level

Not every youth can become a Roger Clemens or a Tim Lincecum, but everyone can become a more complete pitcher - more consistent, more successful. Here are the four fundamentals of pitching that I stress to the younger pitchers I work with. But of course, they also apply to every level of play.

1. First and most important, you should learn how to throw the baseball with your natural and proper motion. This includes both your arm motion and your pitching delivery (stance, leg kick, follow-through, and so forth). Your pitching motion is the foundation of everything else. It is what leads you to your best fastball, sharpest curve, and finest control. No matter how much you sweat and strain, you will never develop your best fastball unless you first develop a proper motion.

2. Second, younger pitchers should try to develop strength in your core, rotator cuff and lower body so that you can throw your best and most natural fastball. Strength training will help you reach the limits of your natural talent quicker. But it's got to be the right kind of pitching training (more info here). Additionally, the secret of pitching is to develop a good fastball first, and only later, for the times when the fastball will be insufficient, to develop other, less natural pitches, like the curveball or slider. I strongly recommend that you throw only fastballs until your teenage years. At that point, you can begin work on other pitches starting with a changeup, and then breaking stuff.

3. The third fundamental of pitching is control. While you are developing your motion and speed, you should simultaneously be developing your control -i.e., your ability to throw the ball over any part of the plate, at will. The first three pitching fundamentals are intertwined: the development of any one fundamental leads to the advancement of the others. The more naturally you throw the ball, the faster your pitch will be and the easier your ability to control it.

4. The fourth pitching fundamental is so intangible that it cannot really be taught. With time and pitching experience, you should develop what I call "pitchability," which is really your ability to pitch with a bit of savvy in all situations. Some say it is instinct. Others claim that pitchability can be learned, that all it requires is a modestly intelligent, willing, and attentive mind. The best you can do is to remain mentally alert and receptive to experience whenever you are on the mound. For example, when a batter takes such a hard swing at your pitch that he pulls your best fastball into foul territory, your intelligence should tell you that he will miss a slower pitch - so throw one.

Pitch Harder With The TUFF CUFF Pitching Manual

Most summer league baseball seasons are coming to a close. Were you satisfied with your pitching this season? Did you perform to your fullest potential?

Even though the season may be ending, you shouldn't stop working on your pitching or strength. Make the most of this time by conditioning your entire body for more strength and flexibility. My TUFF CUFF Strength and Conditioning Manual for Baseball Pitchers can help.

Remember this, a weight-training program is a very small part of the total picture for your success on the pitcher's mound. But if it is done right, it can be a positive factor in your future endeavors on the field. TUFFCUFF can help you gain considerable strength and flexibility. It will also show you what you need to do to throw harder, longer.

The #1 thing that most pitchers are concerned with is velocity improvement. This is an area that TUFFCUFF has had excellent results with. In fact some pitchers have been able to pitch faster and gain 6-13 mph pitching velocity while staying injury free.

But just as important as pitching velocity is endurance. Endurance is important in two areas: 1. First, you need to sustain your average first inning velocity into at least the sixth or seventh inning. 2. Second, you must be as strong at the end of the season as you were at the beginning of the year.

A good weight-training program will do these things, as well as helping to improve recovery time and decrease injury possibilities. It's all here for you in TUFFCUFF, laid out for you in an easy-to-follow format.

Make it happen now. Get tougher. Pitch harder. Make this the fall where you really make something happen with your pitching, and if you ever have any questions about any of the 509 pictures or 190 exercises in your manual, I'm happy to answer them for you. Order TUFF CUFF here.

A Few Thoughts On Baseball Pitching Coaches

I'm in the process of finishing another book on pitching specifically for coaches and parents due out later this year. As I was thinking about the roll of the coach in a pitcher's development, some of my favorite coaches came to mind - my dad, Mike Macchione of Adrean Post 625 in Utica, Bill Thurston at Amherst College, Dewey Kalmer and Mike Dunne at Bradley University, Dan Davis formerly of the El Dorado Broncos in Kansas, Mike Anderson and David Haas of the Cubs organization, and many others.

It's my belief that the most successful coach is not one who gets the most out of his top players, and not even one who gets the most out of the good players. A truly outstanding coach is one who can take the below-average pitcher and elevate him to a higher level.

All those coaches I mentioned above did that. It's something to think about the next time you work with a group of pitchers. Your instruction, believe it or not, actually has a big impact on the players you coach.