The Art of Pitching
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by user Ron Sen, MD
A friend asked for pitching tips for his son, a high school pitcher, so I thought I'd post some (with annotations as available).
1. Throw strikes, work fast, change speeds (Ray Miller, former Orioles pitching coach)
2. Compact delivery to maximize power (mechanics of pitching well-documented in Charles Euchner's "The Last Nine Innings")
3. Hitting is timing, pitching is about disrupting timing.
4. The changeup is designed not to make the hitter miss, but to have them hit weakly.
5. Superior pitchers will always have an out pitch, the Carlton slider, the Gibson fastball, the Koufax fastball or curve.
6. The 'natural corner' for the righthander is the inside corner to right-handed hitters, and outside corner to righthanded hitters for lefthanders.
7. Learn to control both sides of the plate. (Jim Palmer was the best I ever saw in controlling both sides)
8. Study what hitters are trying to accomplish. Guys on the plate want the ball inside. Lefthanders usually hit the ball down, righthanders the ball up.
9. Do not forget about deception, hiding the pitch. (Dennis Eckersley had great deception).
10. Accept responsibility. Nothing starts until you do. Baseball is one of the few games where the defense puts the ball in play consistently.
Date
Thu 06/29/06, 6:27 pm EST
