The 3 R's of Pitching

The 3 R's of Pitching
By guest author: Rick Harig

Realize the basic premise that the pitcher has the advantage. This is the foundation for a successful pitcher. Hitting a baseball is said to be the hardest thing to do in all of sport. The pitcher needs to remember that. "If the swing by a right-hand batter is seven milliseconds (.007) too late, the squarely hit ball will sail foul past first base." - Robert Adair, a Yale physicist who has studied the science of baseball, referring to a 90mph fastball.

Recognize when you, as the pitcher, lose your focus. How do you avoid a big inning? You avoid it by recognizing that you have been taken out of your game and only then can you adjust and refocus to the task at hand. Many pitching plans include some avoidance of "the big inning". It is easy to talk about, but after one of these "big innings" takes place, the pitcher usually only understands it when reflecting back on it after the game and on the chaos that surrounded him while it was going on. The pitcher needs a thought-stopping cue from himself to help recognize that he has lost his focus. It is important to do this so he can pitch in the present and not in the past. The thought stopping cue could be as simple as "STOP", or "play in the now".

Refocus to the task at hand. Once the pitcher "snaps out of it" and concentrates on the present, then he can pitch to his potential and win the situation. The pitcher who analyzes and frets on how all those guys got on base will not be able to refocus into the present to do the job. A routine or mental cue can help with focus. The pitcher needs to let it flow and let the right side of the brain take over. He can only do this if the mind in clear and free of distracting thoughts. Here is an example of how a pitcher can get back into the now by letting his left brain guide him and set his right brain up for the actual pitch. Use the dirt circle of the mound as the positive / negative ground. Whenever he catches himself being negative he goes into the grass. At that time, he can tell himself anything he wants, he can worry about all the runners, the errors and walks that got them there, whatever he wants. However, the second he gets back onto the dirt he is positive and ready to get the next guy out! A routine like this combined with some proper breathing can get the pitcher to stay in a positive, non-distracting mode. Hopefully he spends most of his time in the dirt and stays in the now.

Every pitcher needs a plan. There is not one pitcher in the history of baseball that has gone through his career, let alone a season, or even a game, without adversity. No matter how good a pitcher is he will face dilemmas in games that he needs to have a plan for. It is too easy to say, "Be a bulldog, go get them". Sure successful pitchers have bulldog characteristics and competitive success models built in that they do not even know about, but there is no need to analyze that. It is the pitcher's past experiences, successes, and failures that have given him those built in characteristics. It is the future challenges that the pitcher will face as he progresses to higher levels of competition in his career that he needs the above to help advance his success rate.

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How to Hit a Baseball - Is the Stride Necessary?

Article Title:
How to Hit a Baseball - Is the Stride Necessary?
By Joe Brockhoff

An instructor during my pro days who was teaching me how to hit a baseball told me that if the pitch is straight down the middle, step forward. If the pitch is outside, step toward the outside, and if the pitch is inside, step inside. The problem is that against good velocity, there is absolutely no way for a hitter to wait until after he determines the direction of the pitch before he takes his stride. He will always be late getting to the pitch and will have extreme difficulty with his timing.

Another method made famous by Kirby Puckett, is to raise the front foot in an exaggerated hop-step stride. Many hitters who try this method struggle because they cannot get the front foot down in time to start the stroke.

Super 8 Hitting System techniques are simple, easy and repeatable.

Here is a very important principle: THE STRIDE DOESN'T HIT THE BALL. It merely gets us in position to hit the ball. This means the hands are still back at the completion of the stride. The stride overcomes inertia and supports the hitter against the fastball.

If the pitch is a fast ball, the action would be "stride-stroke". If the pitch is slower, there would be a momentary pause. Example: "stride-(pause) stroke".

The stride is initiated by the large muscle in the upper leg (hip thigh area), which keeps it consistent.

Here are the rules:
1. The stride travels only 6 inches, directly forward, in the same place every time.
2. It occurs at the time of pitcher release.
3. It distributes approximately 30-40% of the weight to the front side, and lands on the ball of the foot, which remains closed, open no more than 45°, which usually happens during the pivot. Some players stride in a "toe tap", with no significant weight on the front foot. If a player places only 10% of his weight down on his stride, how will he get 90% more of his weight off his back side when he rotates to the pitch? He can't.
4. It happens quickly, getting the batter into position to hit.
Finally, never underestimate the importance of a good stride. It is part of the hitter's timing. When he's striding, he's deciding.

The hitter must work on his stride in his baseball hitting drills, using either live or pitching machine practice, so that he can drill "stride and take", just concentrating on technique.

These techniques are fully explained in our baseball hitting tips web site for the "Super 8 Hitting System", completely demonstrated in eight baseball tips which include many tips on how to hit a baseball.

Former Tulane Hall of Fame Baseball Coach, Joe Brockhoff, fully explains his baseball hitting drills with the Super 8 Hitting System, completely demonstrated with videos and hitting drills to help you hit with more power and raise your batting average. http://www.LearnBaseballHitting.com/lcp.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joe_Brockhoff

Using Video to Analyze Pitching Techniques

Using Video to Analyze Pitching Techniques
By Nate Barnett

One of the best ways to make sure your pitching techniques are free of any major problems is to use video to analyze the movements. The key to understanding your performance is to discover what in fact is preventing you from excelling on the mound. Professional baseball players use video all the time to detect changes in pitching technique, etc. Here are some things in the pitching motion to look for.

1. Leg Lift: The leg lift should be a smooth process without rocking backward. Many times pitchers get into trouble because their balance tends to be poor as they lean backwards with their chest. The body should stay slightly bent so the center of gravity remains in the middle of your body.

2. The Front Side: The front part of your body should remain closed off to the hitter for as long as possible. Many times guys with poor pitching technique tend to let their front arm and leg open up (exposing their chest to the hitter) before their front foot lands. Not only does this reduce velocity, but if affects the location of the pitches as well.

3. The Landing: When you review your video, check to see if the landing (when the foot lands) is balanced. Guys who tend to land on the front leg with the weight already shifted forward won't get enough energy transferred into the delivery.

4. The Finish: One of the biggest problems for younger pitchers who lack strength is falling off the mound before they have extended their body towards the catcher. They effectively peel away from the play and do not allow themselves to create the most energy possible.

Finally, in order to learn the best possible pitching techniques, you have to be able to watch yourself over the course of a season. Find someone to video tape you at the beginning of the season, the middle, and at the end at least. If you are uncertain as to what to look for, grab a coach to help you evaluate your movements. Using video is well worth your time if you're serious about improving your ability on the mound.

Nate Barnett is co-owner of The Pitching Academy.

After finishing a professional career in the Seattle Mariners Organization, Nate pursued his coaching and motivational training career. You can find The Pitching Academy's videos, blog, and more articles when you visit the website.

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nate_Barnett


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How to Create Consistent Hitting Mechanics

Albert Pujols Sweet Spot Training Bat

Article Title: How to Create Consistent Hitting Mechanics
By Nate Barnett

I'm sure you know from experience that hitting a baseball consistently for any length of time is one of the most difficult and frustrating things to do in sports. There are two areas of your overall baseball preparation you'll need to develop on a regular basis if you want the most consistency possible as a competitive athlete - the mental game of baseball, and proper hitting mechanics. If you're interesting in learning more about baseball psychology there are quite a few resources online as well as my blog. This article is reserved for teaching a little on the topic of hitting mechanics.

I get the chance to work with dozens and dozens of athletes individually each year. It's truly a rewarding experience much of the time, though at times it can be extremely frustrating to see such talented athletes fail to put in the necessary work to achieve some consistency in their swing. I never have a tough time getting the athletes to work hard when I work with them in the cage. It's when athletes have to motivate themselves to work outside of their practice days when their work habit breaks down.

In order to become a highly consistent and effective hitter, I prescribe the following "medicinal procedure" to be used away from practice:

1. Dry Drills: These are hitting mechanics related drills that are meant to reinforce muscle memory. It is impossible to only put in two to three days on a specific hitting technique and make it stick long-term. The problem you'll run into is that during a game your focus will be placed on the pitcher and not your mechanics. If you have failed to put in the necessary time to build quality muscle memory, you'll revert back to the problems you were initially trying to fix.

2. Mental Rehearsal: The mind is a powerful tool for good or evil. When you use your mind for positive imagery or visualization you will increase your effectiveness as a hitter. If your mind pollutes your body with thoughts of failure, your body will respond in a negative way. Lack of confidence and fear can destroy a good hitter. To make sure you are conditioning your brain in the right way, it's highly important that you replay mental video clips of yourself succeeding offensively. This is easy to do, many of you do it all day long in other areas. Sometimes your mind wanders in church or school and you lose focus as to what is occurring around you. If you can slip into this mode and daydream about your performances, you can truly become a master of the mental game of baseball.

Nate Barnett is owner of BMI Baseball. His website is devoted to teaching the mental game of baseball and hitting mechanics. After finishing a professional career in the Seattle Mariners Organization, Nate pursued his coaching and motivational training career.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nate_Barnett





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Baseball Pitching Mechanics - How Long is Your Stride?

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Article Title:
Baseball Pitching Mechanics - How Long is Your Stride?

By Dan Gazaway

How long should my stride be? That is a question that I get from many coaches, parents and pitchers. Many experts give their opinion of how long a stride should be; some say as long as you are tall, some say longer and some say 75% of your height. The answer is as far as your body will allow you to while maintaining proper pitching mechanics. You don't want to jump to foot strike (loosing balance and posture) just so you can add a foot to your stride. You want to push off the ball of your pivot foot while maintaining a closed posture to foot strike. Don't jeopardize your pitching mechanics at the expense of gaining distance. There is a way to do it right.

Why is a long stride important? There are two reasons why you need a good stride. One is to gather enough momentum to foot strike so your fastball has pop. The most exciting reason is that 1-foot = 3 mph perceived pitching velocity. The closer you are to home plate when you release the ball the better. To the batter's eye the ball appears to be going faster than it really is. So, you are working with distance. Furthermore, when you throw inside, the batter has to react that much quicker to the pitch as well. In order for him to hit the ball on the fat part of the bat, he has to react much quicker to get the bat around. Again, distance helps you as a pitcher.

How do you get a longer stride? Maintaining a proper strength and flexibility pitching workout is important. For example, if your hip flexors aren't conditioned to handle the demands of the workload pitching places on them, it will affect your distance and you will be more prone to injury. To add distance, try a delayed shoulder rotation. Some pitchers gain an extra 6 inches to a foot delaying their shoulder properly. Work on releasing the baseball later; this will also help you gain some pitching velocity.

Dan Gazaway is owner and founder of The Pitching Academy in Utah. He is known as a premiere pitching instructor and is an expert in the area of pitching mechanics. Coach Gazaway also teaches proper pitching grips, pitching workouts and drills.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dan_Gazaway