Deception Wins
April 7, 2011
A Winning Pitcher’s Performance
April 12, 2011
This pitching mechanics segment is all about the G- unit; Randy Johnson. Like many of you, I enjoyed watching Randy Johnson pitch and dominate the hitters. I was amazed how much leverage and torque he could create because of his height; releasing the ball 48 feet from the plate is awesome too.
httpsv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbaKWvLFKjc&playnext=1&list=PLAA72B1825BAC402C
There are many aspects of pitching mechanics I can point out in Randy’s delivery here, but I will only point out one of them. When a pitcher takes his stride toward home plate he needs to ensure optimal balance. One way to do this is to ensure your head is over your center of gravity (belly button) from leg lift to foot strike.
I can point out in Randy’s delivery here, but I will only discuss one of them. When a pitcher takes his stride toward home plate he needs to ensure optimal balance. One way to do this is to ensure your head is over your center of gravity (belly button) from leg lift to foot strike.
At 22 seconds you will see his head is directly over his center of gravity. Most pitchers now still keep their head over their center of gravity but lead with their hips better than Randy did (you can refer back to the article we just did on Matt Cain to see the difference). I’m sure if Randy were still pitching today he would make that simple mechanical change to create even more momentum.
From seconds 26-30 Randy continues keeping his head over his center of gravity all the way until his foot hits the ground (foot strike). Why is this important? All momentum continues to home plate and you remain balanced. If you lean toward the plate or lean backwards you can slow down and put undue pressure on your throwing arm. This type of imbalance will cause a pitcher to throw more with his arm than his legs and hips.
You will notice throughout the video that Randy Johnson keeps his same pitching mechanics regardless of what pitch he throws. You need that consistency in your mechanics to make sure you have command of each pitch and you of course don’t tip off the batter.
Take advantage of the opportunity today to learn how to throw different knee-buckling pitches while keeping your mechanics in check. Today we are kicking off the week with our pitching grips and Workouts DVD sale.
