Jumpstart Your Career and Keep It!
If you have plans to play at a more competitive level as a pitcher, it is time to step it up and learn better mechanics. Proper mechanics will help you during the course of your pitching career because they will help you avoid injury. Proper mechanics have also helped pitchers experience less fatigue in a game because they are using more of their body to get the explosive power it takes to generate a good fastball. Here are just a few mechanical tips that will help point you in the right direction.
Learn how to stay closed! Many have said throwing a baseball is a sideways activity. That is absolutely correct. So what does that mean? When you are in the stretch position, start with your landing leg more closed that your pivot foot. (Place the groove of your left shoe in your right toe if you are a righty) As you take your stride toward home plate, ensure that your landing leg continues in that closed position to foot strike.
Make sure you take a stride toward the plate; dont just step! This means that you will lead with your hips and not your knee. When you take a stride your hips lead the way; when you step, you open up too soon and lose power.
When you take your stride, make sure it is at least as long as you are tall. Also, make sure that your head is over your center of gravity (belly button) all the way to foot strike. Many pitchers fall into the trap of leaning back to try and get power. When your head is too far back, your energy follows and you are at risk of not only throwing more balls than strikes; you are also putting your arm at risk every time you do that. Some pitchers also drop their front shoulder when they take their stride. This raises their throwing arm up higher and keeps their head too far out in front of them. These pitchers tend to keep the ball low which can work in their favor until they start throwing the ball in the ground. It happens to a lot of pitchers with that habit.
The last tip of the day is to make sure you keep balance on the balls of your feet. Many pitchers try and create momentum when they lift their leg up, pushing them back toward first base if they are a righty. If they are a lefty their head will go toward third. When this happens the weight of their body goes back and they lose their balance instantly. It is important that your weight (momentum) go toward home plate throughout your delivery.
