Josh Donaldson Article Discussion

Coach Rich discusses comments by Josh Donaldson and how his swing and approach to hitting has changed, how hitters can get better by Emulating the pros and pros emulating other pros.

Open Hitting Sundays at The Baseball Barn

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

Happy Holidays!

Wishing You Peace and Joy this Holiday Season and throughout the Coming Year!

Top 10 Baseball Movie Scenes

America's pastime has made for some epic film moments! Join http://www.WatchMojo.com as we count down our picks for the Top 10 Baseball Scenes in Movies. For this list, we are looking at the best and most memorable dramatic and comedic baseball scenes from film.

Coaching Players Still In Season

Coach Rich goes over a basic fundamental drill with a no-stride and stride approach to help players while in season.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

What Athletes Eat Before They Compete

Find out what LeBron is really full of...

Legs, Lower Body in the Baseball and Fastpitch Swing

Coach Rich goes over the importance of involving the legs in the your swing in order to hit pitches in different areas of your zone.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Science of Hitting -- Evenly Balanced vs. End Loaded

Choosing a bat with the right length to weight ratio is an important decision.

High end Fastpitch bats are designed to be either "evenly balanced" or "end loaded".

Bats with a bigger length to weight ratios; -10, -11 or -12 are usually considered "evenly balanced" bats. The weight of an "evenly balanced" bat is distributed evenly through the barrel. The lighter the weight, the easier it will be to get it through the zone. Younger players will generally have more success with an "evenly balanced" bat.

Bats with smaller length to weight ratios; so lower numbers like -9 or -8, are usually considered "end loaded" bats. The extra weight is an "end loaded" bat is distributed more towards the end of the bat, making it a little heavier swinging bat.

Most players prefer a lighter swing weight, but if you are a stronger player and can handle a little more weight, an "end loaded" bat is going to be the bat for you.

Front Shoulder Up, Landing on A Straight Front Leg

Coach Rich goes over the importance of landing into a flexed front knee to help keep the front shoulder down. This will help create ground force and torque, thus creating more bat speed and power.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Are Pitching Drills Really a Good Tool to Improve Poor Mechanics?

Prior to about 2004,  I too once believed that pitching drills were the “Holy Grail” of teaching and correcting mechanical faults.   After reading what the research says about the value of pitching drills for improving mechanics…I no longer feel that way, in fact, I believe drills may be one of the biggest reasons why pitchers are too mechanical, over-think, and sometimes move too slow.  Thus why pitching drills reduce pitching velocity.

Since 2004 I have not recommended pitching drills for pitchers at any level.

I now understand that in an activity like pitching, which is a complex two-phase motor skill with no natural breaks or stopping points, drills hinder the flow or the rhythm of a pitching delivery.

Like the golf swing, there is no stopping and yet pitchers are continuously taught to stop at the balance point in order to feel balanced. Stopping at any point teaches the pitcher’s body that there is a break in the flow so it will naturally want to slow down at the point for emphasis.

The science is quite clear on why pitching drills are not valuable for improving pitching mechanics.  This article reveals the science and also provides a video showing the differences between a college pitcher doing the towel drill and an MLB pitcher throwing a baseball:

We see slow movements and hesitations often while doing video analysis…which allows us how to evaluate any pitcher’s delivery by slowing it down and going frame-by-frame.   It becomes clear then why pitchers are losing 5-7 and sometimes 10 mph because they do not use their bodies efficiently to maximize force production.

Slow movements and hesitation reduce velocity.  Pitching drills tend to produce slower movements and hesitations which is another reason why they can reduce velocity.

Pitching velocity is developed mainly from the first movement that a pitcher makes as he moves from his back leg to his front leg. Most of a pitcher’s velocity potential will result from how he  shifts his weight as it moves over the displacement of a long stride.

The faster the pitcher moves his body from as far away from the plate as possible, the more momentum his body will produce and the more energy will be available to shift to the ball.

The more efficient a pitcher’s movement is during this short time, the more potential energy he will have to shift momentum to the next body part up “the kinetic chain”. If he moves too slowly, he may not have enough impulse to get his body in the correct position for the ball release.

If he moves too quickly, he may inadvertently shift his upper and lower body together so that both will rotate at the same time upon landing. The point being made here is that the movement of the pitcher’s lower body away from the back leg can contribute to improved arm speed.  In effect, the lower body is the aspect of the pitching movement pattern drives the eventual speed of the upper body and arm.

Once pitchers learn the sequence of a high velocity pitching delivery they are able to understand how to use their bodies more efficiently and productively.  It becomes clear why a drill

If pitching drills isolate the upper body and do not take into account the important and necessary role of the lower body, a pitcher will be taught something that never occurs in the total pitching movement.

The Kneeling Drill

For example, the “kneeling drill” is used commonly in youth and high school baseball. I once endorsed it. The purpose of this drill is to isolate and focus on using trunk rotation. However, the movement of the trunk in a full pitch is dependent totally on the momentum that is transferred from the lower body. Removing the lower body in this drill will have little benefit and removes a most important aspect of pitching mechanics – ordered movements sequentially build momentum.

The Towel Drill

Another popular drill is the “towel drill”. This drill is designed to help the pitcher get more extension with his throwing arm so the ball is closer to the hitter at release. In effect, this drill teaches the pitcher to reach out further to extend his release point. There are three problems with practicing this drill.

The first is that a towel and not a ball is used. When you throw a baseball, you release the ball. The towel drill also requires the pitcher to fully extend out and finish the pitch while still holding the towel. Not only does a towel not feel like a ball, but also never does a pitcher not release the ball.

The second problem with this drill is that it may teach an error in how the trunk is used. Because the pitcher focuses on extending his arm, he will concentrate on reaching out . . . and in doing so his trunk will flex forward before it starts to rotate. This timing error will reduce power and throwing velocity.

However, the more fundamental difference to what occurs in a full pitch is that the ball is released well before the arm extends (Broer & Houtz, 1967; Gollnick & Karpovich, 1964; Hay, 1993).

Thus, the towel drill trains a movement that will precipitate injury and compete with proper mechanics. The only possible way a pitcher can add extension to his release point is by increasing his starting momentum as he moves away from the rubber. This should help increase his stride length which will aid in developing more powerful trunk rotation and trunk flexion both of which are major causes of power development.

The third problem and the one which I believe causes elbow injury, is that when you do the towel drill the arm is fully extended before it snaps out in front. When pitching a baseball the arm never gets to full extension but remains slightly flexed because the body protects itself from such injury producing actions…since throwing is a natural activity having been around for thousands of years.

The Major Drawback Of Pitching Drills

A major drawback with drills is they emphasize the pitching delivery in parts rather than as a completely dynamic motion with proper rhythm, tempo, and timing, and with no unnatural breaks.
This dynamic movement must be practiced in the context of one fluid motion . . . mostly at game intensity. Pitching drills interfere with that requirement.

The question that should be asked is: “How will pitching drill activities be interpreted by a pitcher’s body?” The answer is they will be processed as a completely different activity with little to no transfer to a pitcher’s game-delivery.

Are there places for drills or partial practice? I believe they have their place largely with beginning pitchers.   There are far better ways to teach mechanics and improve mechanical faults than by using drills.

Finally, what I see as the biggest misconception and confusion in teaching baseball pitching is the emphasis on the arm as the source of power as well as thinking that building more overall arm strength will help maximize velocity.

The arm is the delivery device of the ball and the source of control while the legs and body are what provide the main source of acceleration.

What has influenced me most is the idea that pitching is mainly a skilled activity, which proper conditioning may enhance but if it does, only to a minor degree. Pitching is not about strength or about how far a pitcher can throw a baseball.

Pitching is mainly about developing skilled pitches that the pitcher is capable of using to hit the catcher’s glove or other areas in and around the strike zone.

As former MLB pitching coach Rick Peterson always has said:  “Pitchers are professional glove hitters.”

With more refined physical and mental pitching skills, every at bat for a hitter should be uncomfortable and unsuccessful.

Pitchers, parents and coaches should understand why it is the body that produces velocity and not the arm. This understanding should go a long way in reducing the avalanche of pitching arm injuries that have increased at all levels of baseball unnecessarily.

I honestly believe that pitchers today are wasting as much as if not more than 50% of their practice time on activities that do not improve performance.

Imagine how quickly pitchers would improve when they understand which activities are valuable and performance enhancing…and which are not.

We don’t believe that pitching drills have a place in helping pitchers improve their mechanics or their pitching velocity.

Article Source: Pitching.com

How to Increase Power in a Baseball or Fastpitch Swing

Coach Rich explains the importance of a weight shift in your swing either with, or without a stride to crete ground force and torque to increase bat speed and power.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

The Top Hand-swinging up too much or rolling the wrists early?

Coach Rich goes over the importance of not rolling your wrists early or swinging up "too" much and how to utilize the top hand better.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Open Hitting Sundays at The Baseball Barn

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

Update: The Baseball Barn Hitting Lab Tour

Coach Rich gives a walking tour and description of some new additions to The Baseball Barn.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

What's Inside a Baseball Base?

Watch as a baseball base from Comerica Park in Detroit Michigan is cut in half to see what's inside. This bag was used when the Tigers played the New York Yankees!

Hips & Power/Timing: How do the hips really create bat speed and power?

Coach Rich discusses and demonstrates how the hips are involved in the kinetic chain creating bat speed and power. Coach also discusses how the hips themselves do not create bat speed and power, but are a part of the whole that creates bat speed and power.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

How To Improve Pitching Velocity And Fastball Command

Being able to improve your pitching velocity and command your fastball are two very important elements if you expect to get hitters out consistently.  You can’t get by for long throwing junk or at below average velocity.   However, if you do have below average velocity you must have pin-point control.

Many pitchers spend far too much time on control and thus sacrifice pitching velocity.  But you don’t need to sacrifice velocity in order to gain control.

A pitcher should never slow down his delivery in order to gain ball control. Yet, many coaches recommend that pitchers do that and that is one of the biggest causes of a lack of pitching velocity.

To gain more pitching velocity pitchers must train themselves to throw at a higher intensity more often. That is the only way the body will learn who to create more intensity and thus more velocity. 

Using Fastball Command To Achieve Success
 
Fastball command is one of the biggest keys to pitching success.  That means you want to be able to throw “pitcher’s strikes” rather than “hitter’s strikes.”

A pitcher’s strike is a well located fastball where you stay away from the middle of the plate and away from about belt high.  And sometimes it is a ball that is located just off the plate but looks like a strike to the hitter.

As Pedro Martinez used to say:  “Get ahead with strikes and get ’em out with balls.”

For Little League or youth pitchers, I suggest splitting the plate in half and throwing to the outer half.  Once that is consistent, move on to pitching to the inner half.

A fastball thrown down and away is the most difficult pitch for a hitter.  Ted Williams and Barry Bonds, two of the games greatest hitters, only hit about .230 when pitches were located there.

But you must be able to locate the ball for a strike on the inner half as well.  That inside fastball looks much faster than the ball throw down and away.  So to be successful as a pitcher you must be able to locate the ball away from the middle of the plate while keeping the ball down.  For a youth pitcher practice should be initially about keeping the ball down.  Belt high pitchers are easy for even youth hitters to hit.  Once you can keep the ball down then work on the outer half of the plate.

Two things determine whether a pitcher has good control or not.  The first is mechanics. If your mechanics are poor or inconsistent then good control will be tough to learn.

The second factor is practice.  We of course recommend “blocked over-practice bullpens” where you focus on throwing the same pitch to the same location over and over using several blocked sets of 5-8 pitches.  This method helps train both the brain and the body how to locate to those specific locations because there is a goal for each pitch.

Not throwing enough pitches at game intensity is why so many pitchers never gain command of their fastball or the strike zone.

CAUTION: Do not work on control and sacrifice velocity.  Velocity must be worked on at the same time you are working on ball control.  Remember this – the faster you move the less chance of mechanical error. 

Don’t Slow Down Your Delivery To Improve Ball Control
 
This is where most youth and high school pitchers go wrong.  They slow down their level of intensity to just “throw a strike”.  Big, big mistake.  Doing that simply teaches the body to move slower and thus you are teaching the body to throw slower.  When you want to locate your best fastball, it will be difficult because your brain has taught your body to move slower to locate your best fastball.

The brain learns only what you teach it.  Movement speed is a learned skill.  If you want to locate your best fastball you must teach your body to move at a high level of intensity moving all your forces toward the target.

If youth pitchers focus on one location initially, keeping the ball down, and then on the outer half and then eventually the inner half, and do that during each practice bullpen, they will have success.
Watch and see which pitches get hit the most. Those down the middle and belt high.

Once you can locate inner and outer half and keep the ball down, then practice throwing the ball just above the hands.  This skill is valuable when you are ahead in the count 0-2 or 1-2. Or even 2-2.

This is called “changing eye level.”  You throw a pitch down and then the next one a bit higher.  When you move the ball you also move the hitter’s eye from low to high. This is a tough adjustment for a hitter and makes it difficult for the hitter to lay off of that pitch.

But that above the hands fastball or the letter high fastball must be practiced regularly and be part of every bullpen… if you expect to use it in a game.

Have you noticed how many MLB pitchers are not able to throw a letter high fastball?  Normally they throw it much too high and the hitter of course takes it for a ball.

This is because most MLB pitchers are not throwing enough high fastballs during their bullpens. They might throw 2 or 3, but not blocked sets of letter high fastballs.  Thus the pitcher never learns to command their fastball letter high.

So if you want better command of all your pitches you must first improve your mechanics. Once you can land with good lower body stability while directing all your forces toward the target you can then teach yourself how to command your fastball.  Once you do that and learn how to change speeds you will make most hitters very uncomfortable and become a very successful pitcher.

Every practice session is an opportunity to improve some aspect of your pitching skills. You will only learn what you practice.  Make sure that before every bullpen or practice throwing session that you warm-up your arm properly in order to aid performance and reduce the risk of injury.

Article Source: Pitching.com

Weight Shift: Stride for Bat Speed and Power

Coach Rich goes over the advantages and importance of creating weight shift in your approach.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Owning The Wall

The best defenders in the game own the wall. Adam Jones is one of them. He describes how to judge a fly ball as it nears the wall.

Is Your Back Elbow Keeping You from Hitting to Your Potential?

Coach Rich goes over the proper way for the back elbow to "slot" to your side and prevent extreme shoulder tilt.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

How To Pitch A Baseball With Pin-Point Control: 3 Simple Tips

Every parent and coach wants to teach pitchers how to pitch a baseball with good mechanics, high velocity and pin-point control. But learning how to pitch a baseball with great skill requires a high volume of practice.

One of the most important things is to first teach your son the mechanics of pitching so he is using his body to produce velocity…not just his arm.

Here are 3 important tips on how every pitcher can pitch a baseball with pin-point control and at the same time with improved velocity and less risk of injury. 

Do Not Catch For Your Son – Use a Target Instead
 
There are a number of reasons for this.

If you catch for him, more than likely his total focus will be on hitting the target in order to please dad, rather than on hitting the target with his best fastball. Make sure that when you are teaching him how to pitch a baseball with good control that he is throwing his maximum effort fastballs, rather than throwing at 75-85% intensity.

If you pitch a baseball during a practice bullpen at less than game intensity, this has proven not to work to help game performance pitching.

Leather Pitching Target

That is why I like targets rather than having the father catch for his son. Plus, the father should be back at the mound offering feedback to his son after every 5 or 6 pitches because the father is smart enough to videotape rather than just eyeball as most instructors do. The pitching delivery is too complex to just eyeball. 

Is Your Son’s Body Lined Up to The Target?
 
This is pretty obvious, however what we often see while doing Video Analysis is pitchers who make a big turn away from the target.  Some even sweep their lead leg out and around and then might not land on the mid-line.

How can you expect a pitcher to pitch a baseball and hit the target when he turns away from it? How many pistol shooters do this?  Not only does all the turning affect ball control but it reduces velocity too.

Have you ever watched a cricket bowler? These guys get to run up as far as they want before getting ready to land and release the ball. Cricket bowlers can also throw 90-100 mph with a stiff arm.

But one of their biomechanical principles which most fast bowlers follow is to get lined up directly to the target so that the front shoulder it pointed that way when the front foot lands. Makes sense. You will not see a cricket bowler turning into landing as many pitchers do when learning how to pitch a baseball.

One other thing related to having the body lined up. Make sure the pitcher lands on the midline.  The midline is an imaginary line you draw from the middle of the back foot right toward the target.

You want a RH pitcher to land within 1-2 inches of that line toward first base.  A LH pitcher should land within 1-2 inches on the third base side of the line….but never across the line.

Also make sure that the front foot is directed right at the target or angled slightly no more than 10-15 degrees. 

Are You Throwing Enough Volume of Practice Pitches During Each Practice Bullpen?
 
How on earth do you expect a pitcher to hit the target consistently if he is not doing enough target practice? Pitchers will not have good control or velocity by throwing 25-30 pitches twice a week. That includes professionals.

Do you know that MLB pitchers miss their intended target by on average 12″ and the best still miss by 9’6″? Is that good control? No, it is not.

But why? Because even major league baseball doesn’t understand that pitching a baseball is a skill activity, not a strength activity. Coaches believe that pitchers should save their pitches for the game thus why they do not throw enough pitches during practice bullpens. Makes no sense at all.

If you follow those three tips on how to pitch a baseball with great control you will help any pitcher improve dramatically, plus pitching velocity will improve almost automatically.

If you would like to learn the mechanics of pitching along with exactly how to throw a bullpen with pinpoint control you can check out our instructional DVD’s.

Article Source: Pitching.com

Front Shoulder and Front Leg Connection - The Baseball Barn

Coach Rich explains how the front leg is connected to the front shoulder. By landing, or falling into a flexed front knee, this can help with keeping your front shoulder down and slightly in resulting in more torque and more bat speed and power.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

What Is The Best Way To Improve Pitching Mechanics So That Changes Stick?

Improving pitching mechanics so that needed adjustments stick is challenging. Many pitchers, although they want to make changes in their mechanics and have good intentions, find that the improvements they hoped to make do not stick. So they revert back to their old way.

This is very common and probably occurs more often than not for many good reasons.  It’s the main reason why most pitchers do not improve during the off-season.

Many pitchers are not able to improve their pitching mechanics during the off-season because of the following reasons:

1. they are working on correcting the wrong mechanical fault

2. they work on too many aspects of pitching mechanics at a time

3. they do not do enough repetitions of the new way during each practice session

4. they don’t take enough time in between each new trial pitch so that the brain learns the new way

5. they do not use video feedback to see if the improvements are actually occurring

This article will address #4 in the above list and why not taking enough time in between each new trial pitch is one of the big reasons why changes to pitching mechanics don’t work.
This is also true for ball control.

I am sure you have seen many pitchers simply throw their practice bullpens in a “rapid fire” fashion throwing pitch after pitch without taking time in between. In fact if you watch most high school bullpens you will see that pitchers do not throw enough pitches to not only warm up properly but to prepare themselves for the first inning.

If enough pitches are not thrown with time taken in between each pitch then the pitcher will normally not have good ball control during the first part of the game. In fact, you may have seen this happen often. The pitcher just can’t seem to get through the first couple of innings before he is walking hitters or giving up too many hits and runs.

The problem is he just did not take enough time so that his brain was able to teach his body how to control the ball. The brain is in charge. Plus there is no such thing as muscle memory.

When we do a lot of repetitions with time taken in between each trial we are able to learn something. If there is little to no time taken in between trials, then learning does not occur.

This is true in the case of baseball as well as other sports.

Here’s How To Improve Pitching Mechanics A Proven Way Based On Real Research

Above I outlined 5 ways to improve pitching mechanics during the off-season so that the new changes would stick and become unconscious. All of those 5 aspects should be taken into consideration for improvement to occur in mechanics during the off-season.

Most pitchers, as well as many coaches and instructors in my experience, do not understand that because pitching is such a highly skilled action that many more practice repetitions are required than most think.

If enough practice repetitions are not performed then relearning a new aspect of mechanics will not likely occur. Thus the pitcher reverts back to his old way. His mechanics nor his pitching velocity improve.  Many just get closer to an arm injury.

The same thinking goes into understanding that enough time must be taken in between pitches during practice trials in order for re-learning of the new way to occur.

Thus instead of throwing practice pitches one after the other, time should be taken in between each pitch. This time could be used to take a deep breath, look around, have some water and possibly think about the result that the pitcher wants to produce on the next practice pitch trial.

One thing we know about pitching is that one way to avoid fatigue during practice, which can deteriorate mechanics, is to take at least 20 seconds in between pitches so that the body can physically recover before throwing the next one. The muscles must have enough time to recharge.
Plus now that we know that by taking this additional time based on the study below, the pitcher creates two benefits – less fatigue and more learning.

The study below provides the evidence about this new way of learning.

BETWEEN TRIALS ACTIVITY

Magill, R., & Lee, T. D. (1984, October). Interference during the post-KR interval can enhance learning motor skills. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the Canadian Society of Psychomotor Learning and Sport Psychology, Kingston, ON.

Several conditions of post-trial activity were evaluated for effect upon performance. After a learning trial (the “post-knowledge-of-results” interval) Ss were involved in no activity, verbal activity, related motor activity, or unrelated motor activity.

Performance was affected by the type of post-trial activity. Performance was either maintained by some form of post-KR activity or superior to when there was no post-KR activity.

It was advocated that after a practice trial of a skill, a learner should engage in some activity (not yet determined if that activity should be related or unrelated to the skill) before the next repetition of the skill.

Implication. For effective learning to occur between repetitions of learning trials there has to be a minimum amount of time to allow feedback from a trial to produce a learning effect. That effect does not seem to be modified to any great extent if between-trials activity is related or unrelated to what is being learned. This means that it is possible to repeat trials too close together. Such rapidity does not allow the full learning effects from each repetition to occur.

For example, when practicing basketball free throws, after each shot there should be some non-shooting activity (e.g., put the ball down, walk around the circle, recommence the pre-shot routine) before commencing the physical movement in the next trial.

There obviously is too short of a period and too long of a period that can occur between trials where learning is intended.

As a further example, when tennis players practice from behind a baseline and stroke at a rate of approximately one every two seconds, it is unlikely that effective learning will occur, that is shot accuracy and technique will not be improved. In that form of practice not only is one type of shot not developed because there are usually a variety of strokes played, but the lack of feedback utilization most probably will result in the player developing more consistency in performing both the good and bad strokes practiced rather than improving in any one class of stroke.

It is possible to practice repetitions at too fast a rate to the extent that feedback from one practice trial cannot be used to influence the performance of the next trial. Without that utilization learning will not occur optimally.

So it is important to make changes in pitching mechanics during the off-season to improve pitching velocity, ball control while also reducing the risk of arm injuries.

The key to making permanent changes that stick is to first of all find the correct mechanical fault, to do enough repetitions of the new way while enough taking time in between pitches do that new learning occurs.  Plus coaches should be videotaping so that the pitcher gains valuable feedback on whether he is actually improving or not.

Article Source: Pitching.com

Use This Stride Tip to Improve Contact on the Ball...

Coach Rich with The Baseball Barn goes over stride direction and where to land with your front foot.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Open Hitting Sundays at The Baseball Barn

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

Back Foot-Toe Drill to Strengthen the Back Toe/Leg - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a great exercise to strengthen your back toe and leg for your baseball swing.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Eight Essentials of Post-Pitching Recovery

By By Jim Ronai MS, PT, ATC, CSCS Member, USA Baseball Medical/Safety Advisory Committee /  August 11, 2009

The institution of the pitch count in youth baseball represents a positive step towards ensuring that the game of baseball is safer both in the present and future careers of young pitchers.

As an adjunct to this new pitch count regulation and in an attempt to protect the health and safety of youth baseball pitchers, the following post-performance suggestions are offered. Since most youth baseball pitchers are typically removed from the mound, but not necessarily from the game, these suggestions are intended for post-game or for a time when the pitcher is considered done for the day.

1. Children learn most effectively with a consistent routine. All athletes need to have a routine that they perform both pre- and post-game. The routine should be monitored and consistent. Athletes need to know that the routine needs to be completed correctly before they will be permitted to participate in subsequent game or practice play.

2. Perform a “cool down activity.” Have pitchers jog for four to six minutes, to the point when they start to sweat. This increases general blood flow throughout the body and prepares the body for a post-performance flexibility routine. Increasing blood flow allows the body to circulate oxygenated blood to fatigued muscles. Oxygenated blood helps soft tissues recover and heal following activity.

Here is the entire article:
http://web.usabaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20090811&content_id=6372044&vkey=news_usab&gid= 

Coach Mills Comments:

This is a pretty good article with some good advice for the most part except for the #6 essential which says…

6. Having a cooler of ice available in the dugout is an important part of optimizing a pitcher’s recovery. Keep a few bags of ice available for pitchers to apply to their shoulders and elbows following a pitching outing. Never apply ice directly to the skin or for more than 12-15 minutes. Also be aware of the Ulnar nerve found in the area of the “funny bone,” and be sure not to apply ice directly over it.

The author, who has credentials needs to look at the research on icing.  There is no research that supports icing. It is counterproductive and should not be used after pitching or should not be used for injuries in general.  See my article and the research on icing.

3. Spend five minutes on a post-game, “static flexibility program.” Incorporate movements for the forearms, shoulders as well as the torso and lower body.

For those interested in a pre-pitching warm-up and post-pitching recovery routine, here is one we recommend. Watch the video for more information.

Article Source: Pitching.com

How to Use Drills to Improve Your Swing - The Baseball Barn

Coach Rich goes over how to implement drills to improve your swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Science of Hitting -- Composite vs. Aluminum

Today's bats are made from aluminum or composite.

There are several different grades of aluminum. Lower price point bats are made with lower grade aluminum and are great for beginning players or recreational players.

If you're playing at a more competitive level, you're probably going to want a bat made with a high performance alloy. A high performance alloy will allow the bat to have a longer barrel, a bigger drop weight and lower MOI (or faster swing speed).

Bats made from Composite materials are usually the best performing. Composite materials are usually lighter than aluminum and can be engineered to maximize both barrel length (sweet spot), and the swing weight.

Short to the Ball - How To Have A Compact Swing -Baseball or Fastpitch - The Baseball Barn

Rich demonstrates using a tee during a great drill to help improve a more compact baseball/fastpitch swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Talk on First

Know what goes on at first base in the big leagues? Only those on base can tell you what's said.

Adam Jones, Matt Kemp, Russell Martin and Jacoby Ellsbury reveal what kinds of conversations ensue at first.

Baseball Vs Fast Pitch Softball Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over the differences and similarities of a baseball swing versus a fast pitch softball swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Yankees Remember Yogi Berra at Rogers Centre

9/23/15: The Yankees' broadcast remembers Yogi Berra with a touching tribute before they take on the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre

Where and How to Stride-To the Pitcher or to the Pitch? - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a great drill to help players properly stride in their baseball swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Long Term Effects Of Overuse

When a kid stops growing his growth plates harden at the end of his long bones, a friction-reducing hyaline cartilage develops over the area. In athletes, some of this cartilage will break away eventually, and the bits of cartilage will float in the joint and often be mistaken for bone chips. With continued use, friction will affect the bone where the cartilage used to be. When bone is worn by friction, new bone cells are generated in the form of spikey bone spurs. Eventually, these tiny bone spurs break off from continued use and friction, and these bone spurs will float around the joint along with the initial bits of hyaline cartilage. When a surgeon cleans out a joint, he will clean out both the floating bits of cartilage and floating bits of bone spurs, both of which are called “bone chips” by the media.

Bone chips come from the wearing away of cartilage, which starts the chain of events. It’s from overuse, but not related to poor mechanics. Fortunately, the diagnosis and surgery are very simple. Unfortunately, as a result of this type of surgery, degrees of range of motion will be lost.

Article Source: Pitching.com

How To Be Shorter To The Baseball - The Baseball Barn

Coach Rich goes over a great drill to decrease your distance and speed to the baseball. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Open Hitting Sundays

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

How To Identify Your Perfect Pitch - The Baseball Barn

Rich gives a great exercise to identify your ideal pitch. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Rotational Hitting Drills From Mike Epstein Hitting (Part 2 of 2)

Enjoy this free lesson tutorial from Mike Epstein Hitting! This is one of their 20 online video tutorials aimed at helping players and coaches identify and solve faults in the baseball or softball swing. Be sure to check out part 1 of this tutorial for more great tips!

How To Properly Release Back Heel - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a great exercise to help a player properly release the back heel. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Rotational Hitting Drills From Mike Epstein Hitting (Part 1 of 2)

Enjoy this free lesson tutorial from Mike Epstein Hitting! This is one of their online video tutorials aimed at helping players and coaches identify and solve faults in the baseball or softball swing. Be sure to check out part 2 of this tutorial for more great tips!

How To Fix Casting The Hands - Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a simple drill to help prevent casting of the hands. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

The Physics Of Baseball Pitches

Baseball is a fun sport to watch and play, and a lot of science goes into it!

Science of Hitting -- Length to Weight Ratio

The length-to-weight ratio (also know as the "Drop Weight") is the difference between the bat's length and the bat's weight.

Bats are generally measured in inches and ounces. So for an example, if a bat is 30 inches long and weighs 20 ounces, it will be referred to as a -10 or a "drop 10".

In high school and college baseball all bats must be -3's. But in youth baseball and in fastpitch softball, the bat's length-to-weight ratio is an important attribute when selecting a bat. A bat with a greater length-to-weight ratio will have a little swing weight, which enables the player to have a faster swing speed.

How To Correct Stepping Away From The Plate - Baseball Barn

Rich gives a good exercise to help correct stepping away from the plate. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Rotational Hitting - Mike Epstein

Mike Epstein Hitting's best definition of rotational hitting showing the main differences between rotational hitting and linear hitting by the people who "wrote the book on it."

Stepping in The Bucket or Pulling Off The Ball

Coach Rich, Epstein Hitting Master Instructor, talks about how to correct hitters from stepping in the bucket or pulling off the ball. An easy thing to see, but can sometimes be difficult to correct.

See more at http://vvbaseballbarn.com

Open Hitting Sundays

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

Bat Path with 2-Tee Drill

Coach Rich talks about "bat path" using the 2-tee drill that is set up a little different from most 2-tee drills. Understanding bat path can help you practice the proper swing path-getting the plane of the bat on the plane of the pitch.

See more at http://vvbaseballbarn.com

Top Memorable Baseball Movies

While many films showcase the struggle and glory of competition on the diamond, http://www.WatchMojo.com has selected its top baseball movies of the past few decades that hit home-runs above the rest.

How To Properly "Load" In A Baseball Swing - "Pre-Swing" Movements - The Baseball Barn

Coach Rich, Epstein Hitting Master Instructor, talks about "Pre-Swing" movements and the proper way to "load" a baseball swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Some of the Greatest Baseball Plays

Watch some of the greatest baseball plays you will ever see!

Knob To The Ball? Pulling The Knob Of The Bat Explained - The Baseball Barn

Rich responds to a viewers comment about "knob to the ball", hands to the ball" and staying connected. pulling the knob of the bat towards the pitcher. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Science of Hitting -- Style of Hitter

Fastpitch has three distinct hitting styles. You the the Contact Hitter, the Slap Hitting (or Slapper) and the Power Hitter.

The Contact Hitter has constant control in the hands looking to drive the ball to get on base.

The Slapper gets up to the plate with one thing in mind and that is to drive the ball hard on the ground to use her speed to get on base or to move the runners over.

The Power Hitter steps up to the plate to bring the runners home by dropping the barrel on the ball and hitting is hard and far. 

How To Improve Your Swing Without Soft Toss or Live Pitch - The Basebal...

Rich goes over why you should start players on an impact bag and not live pitching, allowing them to create good swing technique/mechanics. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Discipline At The Plate

Plate discipline is the key to being successful offensively. Matt Kemp explains how young ballplayers can form discipline at the dish.

Squish The Bug? Why This Is Not Good... - The Baseball Barn

Rich talks about how teaching players to "Squish The Bug" sets your swing up for failure.. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

A Look at the Eight NL Starters for the All-Star Game

Take a look at the eight National League starting pitchers that were named to the 2015 All-Star Game

Open Hitting Sundays

Sundays 12 Noon to 2PM

Come in and get a great hitting workout with our staff throwing soft toss in our hitting tunnels. A great way to get swings in for a very low cost!

Open Hitting is limited to 30 people per day. Cost $10 per session.

How To Keep From Lunging Forward During Your Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich explains lunging and goes over a great drill to prevent lunging during a baseball swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

The Sandlot - 4th of July Scene

The Sandlot Fourth of July scene. Ray Charles-America the Beautiful

Have a Safe and Happy 4th of July!

How To Coach A Player Using Rotational Technique - The Baseball Barn

Rich demonstrates how to coach proper hitting positions with a player. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Generating Power At The Plate

Are you hitting in the strike zone? Check out Adrian Beltre's batting advice.

Using Soft Toss To Improve Your Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over how using a simple underhand toss can help improve your baseball swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Happy Father's Day!

From The Baseball Barn

How To Fix Bat Drag Using One Hand Drills - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over how using a lighter bat if very effective for one hand drills. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

The Main Cause In The Increasing Rate Of UCL Injuries

The increase in arm injuries to the elbow’s UCL(Ulnar Collateral Ligament) is from incorrectly thrown “sliders” in which the forearm dangerously supinates at release. Supination of the forearm is what stresses the UCL. On correctly thrown fastballs, the forearm safely pronates after release. On correctly thrown curveballs, the elbow safely hinges after a karate chop motion after release. On change ups, the arm also safely pronates as it does on a fastball. Unfortunately, modern pitchers throw too many “sliders” in which the forearm dangerously supinates at release. Pitchers would be much better off developing a cutter instead of a slider so the arm can safely pronate after ball release.

Many occupational therapists have seen that severe supination of the forearm stresses the UCL. Right-handed carpenters using a traditional screwdriver will stress their UCLs when they repetitively tighten difficult screws by using supination. Left-handed carpenters will pronate their left arm when they tighten traditional screws, and their UCLs are not stressed. Left-handed carpenters stress their UCLs when they “un-tighten” difficult screws because they will supinate in the un-tightening motion. The best studies have been done in ergonomics by occupational therapists who try to prevent injuries in the workplace among construction workers and factory workers who constantly pronate and supinate their forearms as part of their jobs.

Also, studies have been done on tennis players. The fast “first serve” in tennis is not hard on the UCL because the arm safely pronates. It’s the soft “second serve” in which the player tries to add a curving and controlling “top spin” that unsafely supinates the forearm. The soft “second serve” in tennis is the culprit for UCL damage among tennis players. Tennis players would be better off if they always got their first serve in so they never had to spin in a second serve. When the radius bone in the forearm rolls to the outside of the ulna, the UCL is stressed like a stretched rubber band. The medial UCL bundles connect the humerus to the ulna inside the elbow. In young kids, the stress on the UCL will pull on the growth plates and cause inflammation (classic Little League elbow). However, in adults, the stress goes entirely to the UCL because the growth plates have already hardened into bone, and a tear in the UCL becomes more likely.

The link below shows that pronation is most stressful, with a limited range of motion, when the elbow is flexed, as it is on the backside when the humerus externally rotates during trunk rotation. As the elbow extends after trunk rotation, pronation becomes less and less stressful with a much greater range of motion. The opposite is true with supination. Supination is safe with a good range of motion when the elbow is flexed on the backside, but supination becomes increasingly dangerous with a limited range of motion as the elbow extends on the front side.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18332013

Basically, pronation is bad on the backside with a flexed elbow, but pronation is OK at release and beyond with elbow extension. Conversely, supination is OK on the backside with a flexed elbow, but supination is bad at release and beyond with elbow extension.

Article Source: Pitching.com

Situational Hitting, Plate Presence, Pitch Selection...When to Swing

Rich gives some strategy on when to swing when at bat based on game situation. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

SUMMER HITTING MEMBERSHIPS

As we enter into Summer, our goal is for everyone to keep working hard and improving. The Baseball Barn has received multiple requests for summer memberships, so we have come up with 4 options to serve you:

2 Month Hitting Membership (30 minutes per week) - Cost $100.00. With this membership you get One 1/2 hour session per week in a Hitting Tunnel.

2 Month Hitting Membership (60 minutes per week) - Cost $170.00. With this membership you get Two 1/2 hour sessions per week in a Hitting Tunnel.

4 Month Hitting Membership (30 Minutes per week)- Cost $180.00. With this membership you get One 1/2 hour session per week in a Hitting Tunnel.

4 Month Hitting Membership (60 Minutes per week) - Cost $320.00. With this membership you get Two 1/2 hour sessions per week in a Hitting Tunnel.

Plus, Clients with an active Membership will receive 10% off all additional Rentals for that month.  Membership rental time may only be used by immediate family members of the Member. Limit 3 players per lane.

 

These Summer Memberships are available online now. To sign up, simply login to your customer account, click on the "Memberships" tab and choose the option that works best for you.

Should You Keep Your Weight Back? - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over proper weight shift for a powerful swing and a drill to help shift your weight into your front side. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Getting Over Injuries

Injuries are to be overcome. Jacoby Ellsbury details what it takes to get healthy and move on from an ailment.

Fix Bat Drag With A Football? - The Baseball Barn

Rich shows a great training technique to fix bat drag. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Importance of Developing Proper Movement Patterns at a Young Age

Let’s face it, making movement pattern changes can be difficult and very frustrating especially if proper movement patters weren’t developed at a young age.  Think about the first time you started throwing a baseball, whether you were 5 years old or 12 years old, you probably watched someone else do it and tried to copy what they were doing.  As you continued to throw over the years you started developing habit patterns as far as the way your body moved.

It’s just like learning how to run, everybody develops their own style and it becomes unique to you as an individual.Now someone who learns how to run but doesn’t have good posture or form is going to eventually start having aches and pains.  In order to get rid of those aches and pains in their joints they will either have to stop running all together or change the way they run.

Same with throwing a baseball, except throwing a baseball is a much more complex movement and therefor more difficult to change depending on how old you are.  Anytime you are having aches and pains it’s a signal from your body that something isn’t right.  Or if you aren’t having any pain but you feel like your velocity is much less than what it should be, you most likely aren’t moving efficiently and don’t fully understand how to use your body.

This is why it’s so important for kids to be active at a young age.  I love when kids are playing multiple sports rather than just one because it allows the body learn different types of movements.

When I was a kid, after I got home from school I was straight out the door and on my skateboard riding around the neighborhood with friends.  This is completely belief based and maybe kind of funny but I really think riding a skateboard gave me better hip strength and flexibility later in my life.  I would use both legs to push off from when the other started to get tired.The neuromuscular system is developing in young kids so it’s a crucial time for them to activate certain movements athletically.

For example, let’s say there’s two 21 year olds.  One is gifted athletically but for whatever reason has never thrown a baseball in his life.  He might be a running back or a point guard and is on a higher level than his peers.  The other one has ability but not nearly as gifted as the other 21 year old and from the time when he was 12 to 16 years old played baseball and pitched for a little while.

Take both of these kids at their current age of 21 and have them throw a baseball, the kid that played for those four years is going to be able to throw much more effectively than the athletically gifted kid because his neuromuscular system is going to remember that even though he hasn’t thrown a baseball in five years.  The athletically gifted kid doesn’t have that pattern stored in his body and it is completely foreign to him.  Obviously there are exceptions but for the most part this would be the case.  Think about when you watch a basketball player or a boxer throw out the first pitch at a major league game.  A lot of the time it is comical because they’ve simply never done it before but the fact that their throwing out the first pitch implies that they excel at their sport.

In baseball and more specifically pitching, it is extremely important to focus on skill development from a young age.  The life span of an athlete is much shorter than other professions and if you wait too long…well then it can be too late.  Kids these days are spending too much time playing games and not nearly enough time on skill development.  In my opinion baseball is way behind in this aspect.  You don’t get better playing games you get better practicing and developing your skills.  Baseball is a skill sport and that’s what makes it great, you don’t have to be the biggest fastest most athletic kid to have success.  And when you are competing against athletes that are more naturally gifted you can separate yourself by having exceptional skills.

I was watching an interview with Freddie Roach who is Manny Paquiou’s trainer.  If you don’t know who Manny Paquiou is then you either live in a cave or are disconnected from society.  If you’re reading this article then most likely that’s not the case but he is a boxer.  Anyway, Freddie was asked at what point he knew Paquiou was going to be a star.  His answer was it happened in one fight.  All of the sudden Paquiou was starting to put punching combinations together like it was second nature, he just started reacting without thinking and all of the hours upon hours in the gym started to show itself.  Everything they had worked on for years in the gym out of nowhere just clicked and it has changed the boxing world forever.  I am writing this article before the Maywether fight but win or lose he will go down in history as one of the best boxers to walk the face of the earth.

My hope in writing this is to raise the question in your mind about how you are going about  yours or your son’s development as a baseball player.  Just like a doctor or a lawyer needs to develop skills in their profession so doesn’t a baseball player need to develop the necessary skills at a young age in order to compete at a high level later on.  Sometimes you have to think outside the box and do what everybody else isn’t instead of following along with the crowd.  Less games more practice.

To your success,

Ryan Mills

Article Source: Pitching.com

What Is Short To The Ball, Long Through Ball? - TheBaseball Barn

Rich explains what "Short to the ball, long through the ball" means. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Why Kids Should Become Catchers

Catcher is one of the most respected positions in baseball. Russell Martin talks about why kids should get in the trenches to become a catcher.

One Handed Hitting Drills - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over some great one handed hitting drills. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Hitting With Runners On

Drive home runners when they're on base. There's nobody better to listen to than Matt Kemp.

3 Common Batting Swing Flaws - Coaching - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over 3 common flaws with a bat swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

"King Felix" Herandez Pitching Mechanics Breakdown

I break down Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners pitching mechanics vs. the Angels. Hernandez is the best in the MLB at messing with hitters minds. What do you think... Does King Felix have perfect pitching mechanics or is there flaws that could be fixed?

Improve Your Swing with The Impact Bag - Contact Drill - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over using an Impact/Heavy Bag and the Contact Drill to improve your swing technique. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Teaching Speed

Speed kills, and baseball players are always trying to improve it. Jacoby Ellsbury has the low-down on how to accomplish that.

How To Find YOUR Stride for Your Baseball Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a simple way to ensure you are taking a large enough stride for a powerful swing. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Aluminum To Wood

To take the next step, every player has to drop the metal and adopt the lumber. Here's some advice from Jacoby Ellsbury, Matt Kemp, Russell Martin, and Adam Jones about making the switch.

How To Use Contact Drills To Improve Bat Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over using a contact drill to work on a variety of different swing techniques. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Know When to Steal

Stealing a bag is all about timing, anticipation and flat-out speed. It's an art to know how to steal, and Jacoby Ellsbury offers his advice for how to do it. Only on Between Innings.

How To Have A Proper Batting Swing Stride - The Baseball Barn

Rich goes over a simple way to ensure you are taking a large enough stride for a powerful swing. See more a http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Youth Pitcher Exhibits Explosive Pitching Mechanics

Here is a great example of what I consider to be a youth pitcher with explosive pitching mechanics.

This pitcher is 10 years old, 4 ft. 6″ and 68 lbs. and produces mid to upper 50’s velocity.

Many parents and coaches at the youth level spend a lot of time with pitchers so they can throw with good control yet very little time on showing them how to maximize their pitching velocity.

The fact is youth pitchers should be working on velocity first so they fully understand how to use their bodies to produce velocity rather than just their arms.

When youth pitchers begin to focus on throwing strikes rather than throwing with maximum intensity they end up having good control but never seem to gain velocity.  There is a good reason for that.  If the body is not challenged to throw with intensity, then explosive movements will not be trained into their brain and the body.

All movements first occur in the brain.  Thus why having the intention to throw faster can produce a faster pitch.

Velocity is a trained action.  It does not come because a pitcher gets older or bigger.  If the body has not been trained to move fast using explosive actions then the body never learns how to produce those fast movements.

Thus why there are many big and tall high school pitchers who can barely throw above 80 mph.   Many were just trained to move slow.

In fact, moving away from the rubber fast for any pitcher is much more important for producing velocity than trying to gain more strength.

In our High Velocity Youth Mechanics DVD’s we show how we train two (2) 11 year old pitchers.  One is an average size RH who throws 55 mph while the other is a big lefty who throws 65 mph.

The point is that larger pitchers have the advantage because velocity is a function of the pitchers size,  and his movement speed or explosive movements away from the rubber.  Or Mass times velocity equals force.

However, smaller pitchers like Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez who pitched at 5’10 170 lbs could match Roger Clemens in velocity even though Clemens was 6’5″ 240 lbs.  How did Pedro do it.  He moved much faster and more explosively than Clemens.

Thus when parents first start their sons pitching, they would be wise to focus on throwing intensity, fast explosive movements rather than focusing on throwing with good control.

Parents and coaches should remember that throwing with control is a learned skill and is simply target practice…while throwing intensity and explosive actions must be learned early on.

Your son starting out will eventually be able to hit the target if you focus on that while he is throwing maximum effort fastballs.

Do not allow him to slow his body down to gain better control which is what most youth and even high school coaches do.

So have your son throw with good intensity, explosive and fast movements and eventually he will also throw with good control.

But remember – velocity first and ball control second.

Article Source: Pitching.com 

Little League vs Big League Swing - The Baseball Barn

Rich talks about how you can get your swing to be like a big league player. See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Travel Teams

According to Matt Kemp, Adam Jones and Russell Martin, there's no better way to fine-tune your game than to play club baseball. Oh and hanging with friends and playing ball isn't a bad way to spend a summer.

How To Add Power To Your Swing

Rich talks about some techniques to add power to their batting swing.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Between Innings - Balancing School and Baseball

Baseball is obviously important. But until you're a pro, school comes first. Here's some advice from Jacoby Ellsbury and Adam Jones about keeping your priorities straight.

5 Common Swing Flaws That Rob Power

In this video Rich describes 5 Common Swing Flaws we see in young hitters and what to look for.

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

Yankees Recreate Scene from 'The Sandlot'

Members of the 2015 Yankees recreate a memorable scene from the classic movie, "The Sandlot"

Magic Bullets to Fix Swing Flaws?

Rich talks about what it takes to correct swing flaws and are there really any magic bullets?

See more at http://www.vvbaseballbarn.com

15 Mechanical Faults That Reduce Pitching Velocity

MLB pitcher Zach Greinke displaying good mechanics at landing

You might say that pitching mechanics is simply moving from the back leg to the front leg using a stable back leg and driving down the mound explosively onto a stable front leg.

Without a stable back leg a pitcher’s mechanics are going to suffer and he will lose pitching velocity.  Then once he lands on the front leg if that front leg is not stable and locked into the mound surface so that his front hip and front knee do not move, he could easily be losing 5-7 mph in potential pitching velocity.

Have you ever heard the expression – you can’t fire a canon from a canoe?

Can you picture that scene.  Firing a canon from a canoe.  What’s the problem?  The problem is the same problem that pitchers have.   A poor base of stability at the beginning of their delivery and again at landing.

So you line up the canon to the target from the back of the canoe.  Ready – aim – fire!  What happens?  You go in the water and the canon misses the target by 50 yards and it goes in the water right after you.  Sounds like pitching.

The Pitcher Must Have A Strong Base Of Support

If the pitcher’s base of support is not stable because of a collapsing back leg or poor posture or a swinging lead leg, then two things are affected.  Force production goes into the ground and over toward 3rd base….so velocity drops.  Secondly,  the likely-hood of the ball hitting the target are lessened dramatically since the pitcher is not moving in a direct line toward the target.

Pitchers…are you focusing solely on the collapsing back leg?  Why not?  Much of it is a strength issue.  There are 29 muscles coming out of the hip.   Those stabilizers, which there are many, help keep the back leg strong.

Why do so many of the elderly need those walkers to assist them at walking? Because many became inactive and their hip muscles weaken and eventually atrophy. Thus no strength to hold them up.

The groin is part of the adductor muscle group (there are several) which must be simultaneously strong and flexible — strong enough to function as a core stabilizer of the pelvis and help transfer energy from the legs upward during both early and late phases of throwing and flexible enough to stretch during the drive toward ball release.

This weakness causes the pitcher to rotate over his back hip and start early hip rotation…the biggest initial velocity killer.  Once the pitcher collapses he can never regain that lost power…so his arm has to do more work. Thus more sore arms.

Guys…here’s the skinny.  Most of your son’s have poor core strength.  Weak hips and tight glutes and tight lats.   Or tight hips and weak glutes.  They can’t stand on a single bent leg without wobbling all over the place.

They can’t land with a stable front hip and leg.  And you wonder why the large majority are losing 5-10 mph at the youth, high school and even college levels.

There are several mechanical faults that reduce velocity besides a collapsing back or front leg.

Here are the ones we regularly see during pitching lessons or while doing video analysis that reduce velocity and control and can add stress to the arm:

1.  poor starting position – the pitcher does not position his weight over his back leg
2. poor posture – trunk slumps forward or backward
3. collapsing back leg – knee continues to drift out over back foot toe during weight shift
4. breaks hands too high or too early
5. swings the lead leg out and around
6. doesn’t lead with the hip – the shoulder and hip move out together
7. leans head and trunk back during stride
8. doesn’t use back leg drive to power the lower body into landing
9. poor landing position
*  doesn’t land on the midline
*  lands with front foot too closed off or directed away from the target
*  knee is not directly over the foot – is positioned either to the inside or outside of     ankle
*  throwing elbow not at shoulder height – either too low or too high
* front shoulder not directed at target
* back hip is not higher than front hip
*  head is either too far back behind bellybutton or too far forward
*  stride is either too short or too long
*  glove arm too high or pulled toward the side too early
10.  Does use glove arm properly to help start trunk rotation
11.  Throwing elbow is not positioned above the non-throwing shoulder during trunk rotation.
12.  Hips and trunk are not facing the target when the throwing arm lays back
13. At ball release the head and shoulders are not out over the landing knee
14. trunk is not flexed forward at finish
15. throwing arm does not finish down and outside of landing knee

Most pitchers have 3-4 major faults that when improved can improve velocity 5-7 and sometimes 10 mph.

Remember the pitching motion is not only a very complex action but it contains the fastest human motion in all of sports.  Trying to just eyeball that motion is basically futile. There is just too much going on.

The most important thing that parents should understand is that in order to recognize these faults video must be used and slowed down frame-by-frame.

Instructors who are not videotaping are just guessing.

Article Source: Pitching.com