Having the opportunity to teach pitchers has been a real blessing in many ways. I’ve had the opportunity to travel around and help pitchers throw faster, gain more confidence, add move movement on their pitches etc; what a great life! To all the pitchers I have worked with, their parents and coaches; I want to thank all of you for your time and dedication to an awesome sport.
That being said, there are many times that being a pitching coach can be frustrating. The most frustrating part about it is there are still way to many old habits being taught that just ruin pitchers. I’m talking about coaches and parents that are still teaching some of the things they were taught as pitchers 30 years ago. The science of pitching has changed drastically since then.
Here is a short list of common mistakes you may have been taught growing up or you are being taught right now that just shouldn’t be taught like drop and drive, stay back, stay over the rubber, tall and fall, point your toe to home plate, reach back and the one I want to talk about today is get on top to created angle.
I was doing another video analysis last night of a student from Pennsylvania who sent me his video. He did a fantastic job using his legs and hips to throw the ball; very flexible hip flexors. He created a great deal of torque throughout his delivery but the way he was throwing kept him from reaching his fullest potential and, in the long run, could cause some damage to his arm and career.
The issue was that he was dropping his front shoulder so low that it changed his natural throwing arm slot. Dropping his front shoulder caused his throwing arm to raise so high that he was releasing the ball very high. Doing this slows his arm speed down and puts undue stress on his throwing arm.
I gave him some pitching drills to work on so he can change that habit. It will be awhile before he “feels” how to throw correctly because he is in High School and has had that habit for awhile but it will be worth the work.
I’m assuming by the way he was throwing the ball that some coach (who means well) somewhere told him that he needs to throw over the top and that was his interpretation of what that meant.
If you have questions or concerns about your own mechanics pick up your own copy of Pitching Mechanics/Coaching Pitchers DVD today! You will understand how you can stay healthy, throw faster, control your pitches, learn more pitches and much more!
Here is a video I made awhile ago that will help you understand the article in greater detail.