I would like to donate a pitching machine to my HS umpire association. It would be used exclusively to train umpires to track the baseball all the way to the mitt. I don't think it needs to throw more than 50 mph, and breaking balls would be totally unnecessary. Ideally, it would throw real baseballs. I do not need an auto feed feature since the balls would be fed in one at a time. Any tips (Jugs, ATEC, etc.) would be appreciated.
Replies sorted oldest to newest
doesnt make sense,,set the machine to throw strikes and let the umpire call strikes over and over again?
Im not entirely sure i understand the reasoning behind this, but the BATA-2 is a great machine. It'll throw curveballs, fastballs, sliders, etc. most any pitch a human pitcher could throw, and either left or right-handed.
The purpose is to train umpires to track each pitch all the way to the mitt. Proper use of the eyes leads to proper timing, which leads to better strike/ball accuracy. If you watch major league catchers in slo-mo, almost all of them blink when the pitch arrives. Umpires can't do that
if you feel its worth that money for an umpire to learn to watch a pitch before making a call,welll you probably work for the obama administration.if they arent tracking the ball when they are calling balls and strikes what the heck would they be doing?
I have been to a pro camp (Jim Evans - 30 years MLB experience) and nine NCAA clinics taught by CWS umpires. Every one of them used pitching machines for cage work to teach umpires proper mechanics on tracking pitches. There is WAY more to it than you realize.
Dash -
Just a thought - wouldn't you want a machine that throws breaking stuff as well?
I watch a lot of youth/HS ball and where I see the biggest weakness in plate umpires is inconsistent calls on breaking balls.
Of course it's real easy to be judgmental when I'm sitting in a spot where I have the perfect angle to see at what height a pitch crosses the plate... It's probably a whole lot harder to judge the height/depth of a pitch moving right at you at high speed.
Dash -
Just a thought - wouldn't you want a machine that throws breaking stuff as well?
I watch a lot of youth/HS ball and where I see the biggest weakness in plate umpires is inconsistent calls on breaking balls.
It is not necessary for the machine to throw breaking balls, since no pitch is straight anyway. Proper use of the eyes is tracking the pitch all the way to the mitt (and then watching what the catcher does with it) before making a decision. This will lead to proper timing and fewer errors in judgement. Inconsistency on breaking balls is caused by calling the pitch (i.e., deciding if it is a strike or ball) when it is still 10 feet in front of the plate.
Dash,
I would look on craigs list. You can pick up a decent used machine for a fraction of the cost of a new one. Just make sure the wheels are in decent shape and have them demo it for you. Any of the big players will be good machines (BATA, Jugs, ATEC. etc.).
Thank you.
