how to get that low pitch for a strike

I actually teach three different ways depending on the location of the low pitch and the student I am working with.

1. Get the thumb to 6 o clock as mentioned, get under ball, give with impact of pitch with a little lift.

2. Catch top half of ball and give with pitch and lift a little.

3. Drop knee technique. Drop left knee prior to receiving pitch to lower body and then use option 1 of getting thumb under pitch.

I thought that dropping your thumb to 6 puts you at a risk of injuring your thumb...

Good point..but I don't like extra body movement or dropping to a knee ... if everyone knows you are trying to make the pitch look a little better then it will be tough to get... trust your glove and see if you can get it



What hurts the thumb is having your hand jammed all the way inside your glove... learn to catch between the thumb and first finger and keep half of your hand out of the glove.... in other words..something is wrong with the catcher if he had to wear one of those molded thumb prices


Charlie Obrien was arguably the best receiver in the game..never wore a thumb price or batting glove......

quote:

What hurts the thumb is having your hand jammed all the way inside your glove... learn to catch between the thumb and first finger and keep half of your hand out of the glove.... in other words..something is wrong with the catcher if he had to wear one of those molded thumb prices


Charlie Obrien was arguably the best receiver in the game..never wore a thumb price or batting glove......

Absolutely not true. The pics above are of Ivan Rodriguez, Mike Piazza, and Brent Mayne...three long time MLB veterans. A lot of guys will wear them for preventative reasons as well as rehabilitation reasons. If you pay attention this MLB season you will be surprised how many guys wear a Catcher's Thumb.

It only takes one foul tip to the thumb to justify the thumb protector......

A. Catching 101 is spot on. Thumb protectors fall in the same category as the protective cup. Don't leave home without it. You are going to get "thumbed" no matter how good you are. You are always at risk on glove side sinkers.Once you get thumbed, your probably going to have to deal with it offensively & defensively for a long time.

B. #1 Your job as a catcher is to make sure that every strike is called a strike.Trying to turn balls into strikes is a losing strategy.You want to ensure that the low "strike"( especially low middle & low out) gets called. Try rolling your thumb from a 6 o'clock position to 12 o'clock as you catch the ball. This must be a smooth one piece move. It keeps you from "boxing"(pushing it down) the low ball, saves your thumb, & makes the ball appear 15" higher because your thumb is up rather than down.Additionally you must beat the ball to the spot & catch the ball "up to the plate."If you get there late the ball will control your glove. Ideally, when the ball his your glove "all action stops." Catchaprospect's comment about catching the ball up in the glove is also a good one. If you perfect this technique there will be no peceptive glove or body movement like there is when you try try to lift the low ball. Jason Varitek & Russell Martin are two of the many ML catchers who utilize this method.

JW

I got thumbed once in college about 16 years ago. Even today when I'm playing catch with my guys there are certain balls I catch that make me want to curl up in the fetal position and cry my eyes out. I would have paid serious money back in the day to have a thumb protector.

I tell my guys the purpose of framing isn't to "buy" strikes but to make sure the ump gets a good look at it so he can make his own mind up. Give them a good picture of the pitch and they will call it what they call it.

Then talk to them - ask them if it needs to be up, in, out or down more. You will be amazed how many more strikes you get that way than almost anything else.

Wow.. catching 101 on the attack it seems.

No disrespect by the following comment. When I sat across the diamond watchin Pudge in spring training from the dugout many moons ago, I think it was my 2nd spring training, I was blown away by his release and his arm...still am...when I watched Piazza, it was the sound of his bat.. same with Posada and Kendall. All of those guys were known for handling pitchers, or throwing out runners and most importantly handling a staff. Who are the guys you think of when you mention the softest hands...who are the "receivers"?

I find more catchers wearing them are those who go out to get the ball and lock out at impact. If the thumb is pointing up to the sky then obviously its going to get hammered and bruise. Its a different style. Would I tell a high school kid to wear one, no. I would show him a more relaxed technique to show how to make certain pitches easier to handle and not have to worry about getting thumbed.

That's why this board is so much fun to be one...to hear different thoughts and different approaches.

Ha..none of my catchers have gotten thumbed in the events I take them to... at least not until I get them to receive it deep... I might have to go back to the knee saver post from a couple years ago now and see what's being said ...

God bless

Next week I will try to get some video up on youtube to see this old "receiver" in action

quote:

Originally posted by catchaprospect:
Wow.. catching 101 on the attack it seems.

I just don't think that it's a fair statement to say "something is wrong with the catcher if he had to wear one of those molded thumb prices".

At some point every catcher will get thumbed...maybe because a pitch was caught incorrectly, maybe because of a foul tip, or maybe the pitcher threw a sinker when he was supposed to throw a 4 seam fb. It just happens and the best thing to do is to be proactive and try to prevent it.

Also, where did you get the info that Charlie O'Brien never wore one?

New thought Xan.... do you think kids and just catchers in general get thumbed because simply their hands are all the way inside the glove as compared to having just the fingers in it? If hand is all the way in the glove then it will take a beating.

I don't ever remember Charlie wearing one during Expos camp in 2000, but I do know that by imitating his style to my game to a completely new level.

My personal belief is that you can do a lot of things to help prevent getting thumbed but there will be times when you get thumbed. It just happens. When I got thumbed in college I didn't have my hand all the way in and it was a fastball going upper 80's with some real late bite to it. It just got on me and got my thumb.

I agree that the hand all the way in will take an overall beating. We got a guy who throws 90 and I had to take a freshman and turn him into a catcher. First day I told him to never put his hand all the way in but he had the habit of doing that. It took him about 3 bullpens before he started keeping part of his hand out. So yes the hand being inside the mitt is not good but it doesn't keep from being thumbed.

quote:

Originally posted by catchaprospect:
New thought Xan.... do you think kids and just catchers in general get thumbed because simply their hands are all the way inside the glove as compared to having just the fingers in it? If hand is all the way in the glove then it will take a beating.

I think that if your thumb is jammed in as far as it goes that you are putting yourself into a higher risk category. But the reason that people get thumbed is because the ball was caught incorrectly (maybe due to a foul tip, not expecting a sinker, etc.). It doesn't matter how far your hand is into your mitt if you catch the ball in the sweet spot between the thumb and index finger you won't get hurt.

I think its similar to wearing a shinguard while hitting.

Some guys might wear one their entire career and never foul one off their shin, but they'd rather have it and not need it then need it and not have it.

I had to cut new thumb holes into my glove right at the side if the glove which locked my thumb in place...AllStar then made a glove for me with a lower thumb setting and instead of laces it was a velcro strap which I loved. My thumb never moved around and was placed behind the thick padding so maybe that's why I never got thumbed

Maybe its simply the thumb position on all glove manufacturers