The art of pitching in baseball is the most complex and difficult sports tasks to teach. It involves using the biomechanics of the whole body. This cohesive system of movement contains three basic areas that can be taught and practiced to help develop pitching skills. First the whole body must be used when pitching. Pitch location and placement are fundamentals that are next. Lastly actual pitch development is necessary.
Utilizing every muscle from the bottom up is the key for pitch velocity and arm strength. Common sense dictates that most young pitchers rely on their upper body to throw hard. The term “arm-strength” refers to how hard a pitcher throws. Explaining and teaching a young pitcher that the lower body is where power comes from will help them develop correctly. When a pitcher uses leg drive on a pitch it gives them boundless power source and initiates maximum velocity on every pitch they throw.
Proper mental and verbal cues can help a young player to use his legs. Driving off ones back leg on every pitch is crucial to maintain velocity on every pitch. Using leg exercises such as walking lunges and jump squats really develop the strength and power to succeed. Implementing a consistent stretching program for the lower body will also help develop a young pitcher. Maintaining leg strength, flexibility and consistency of movement are three biggest starting points for a young pitcher to focus on.
The development of pitch location and placement are the most crucial things a pitcher needs for success. There are many hard throwers in the game of baseball on all levels. If they are unable to control and place their pitches they really don’t have much success. The focus on aiming ones pitches follows one rule of thumb. Aiming at a small target will produce the best results.
Using a focus point or aiming will help develop the ability to place ones pitches. This can be used to build a pitching plan against any hitter. Using placement on the ball will eliminate any wasted arm strength. This can help keep a pitchers arm consistently strong throughout a game.
Most pitchers have a natural tendency toward one type of pitch. Ones who throw hard usually develop a fastball or a slider as their main pitch. If a pitcher has tremendous placement on the ball they tend to have a change-up or off-speed pitch. Lastly if a pitcher has pitch placement and movement on the ball a curve is the top pitch to develop.
Having a main pitch to rely on is a staple in pitching. But when a young pitcher is being coached having a second and even a third pitch developed is optimal to success. Most young pitchers have the ability to learn numerous pitches because they have not developed bad habits or a reliance on one specific pitch. The rule of thumb in baseball is to have a fastball pitcher add a slider or curve ball to his arsenal. For a placement pitcher having a varied amount of these types of pitches works best for long term improvement.
The keys to teaching a young pitcher to blossom are basic fundamentals to the game. The key is to start them off in the beginning with good work habits and proper understanding of what they are doing. Following three areas highlighted will give any young pitcher a foundation for strong development.
