I was hoping for some advice on might be my best route and what to expect.
i began college as a catcher, i had a good arm (88mph consistently to second base). my team had a game against a conference rival who happened to have a future first round pick on their team- so the stands were packed with scouts. the umpire told me after warmups, "son today's going to be a big day for you; throw everyball as hard as you can down to second and come draft time you should get an offer." so i was pretty excited to say the least. however on the first pitch of the game i couldnt see the baseball and was hit in the mask. the umpire then rubbed my shoulders for a second and said relax i know its nerve wracking but you've gotta stay calm and just play the game. second pitch off the shoulder. third off the knee. I looked over at my coach and told him to pull me- i couldn't see the baseball. later that day i foundout i was 50% color blind; colors are half as intense as they should be and things blend in to their surroundings for me.
My days as a catcher were over, but with my arm strength it was suggested i try pitching. after a month of pitching iwas throwing 94mph. My mechanics (and control) were erratic due to the lack of instruction and no knowledge of pitching mechanics. The weekend before i had numerous colleges coming to watch me pitch ( i was finally beginning to consistently throw strikes), my cleat got caught on the lip of the grass and dirt on my way to cover first base and i absolutely destroyed my ankle. i was in a cast for multiple months. Once i finished therapy i returned to my college the following season and entered into a spring game to pitch. I had not yet been radared and had no idea how hard i was throwing, but i thought things were going well. I don't recall how the inning went other than facing the final batter. He was a future draft pick and was the top hitter on his team. I struck him out on four pitches, fastball on the outside corner, curveball (ball), changeup he was way ahead of, and then absolutely blew the fastball by him.
At this point i felt GREAT, i thought wow im back and better than ever. i returned to the dugout with a giant smile on my face and asked my teammates who just got from taking notes and radaring the inning, what i hit. the conversation basically went....
"what did i top out at"
"you dont want to know"
"come on man"
"seriously dude you dont want to know"
"DUDE"
"im really sorry.... 68"
I didnt know whether he was kidding or not but as i looked down the bench everyone had that 'were so sorry look' on their faces and nodded in agreement.
i walked over to the coach and basically said thanks for allowing me to come out but i need to go to the doctor and get things straight because whats the point in continuing on if its this hopeless when i could be putting effort into academics, he nodded in agreement.
i went on to see numerous different surgeons who all informed me there was nothing they could do, there was a calcium deposit in the ankle joint (hidden under connective tissue and nerves) inhibiting mobility and i needed to give up baseball. immediately i thought no chance, im going to pitch again. so the next day i set out to teach myself how to throw left handed.
i'd show up to the field everyday before the team would get there and throw buckets of balls into the fence. in the evenings i would work on mechanics and study videos of MLB pitchers, breaking down each movement of the body and how muscles affect the mechanics of pitching.
after a year i got up to about 80 mph left handed and then things plateaud for me. so to findout why i figured my mechanics righty were good enough and i could teach myself lefty by discovering what was missing. it turns out the same thing i was missing lefty was the mechanical problem the calcium deposit caused righty (hip firing timing issue)
with all the knowledge i aquired about pitching through countless hours of studying and throwing lefty i made a simple adjustment in my mechanics righty and began throwing what seemed to be hard.
i walked onto the four year school i was attending and as the fall progressed my velocity climbed to the low 90s. long story short my mechanics were inconsistent and i had a hard time spotting the ball my first few innings of the fall. by then the coach had made up his mind and even though i thought i pitched very well the last few innings of the fall, he disagreed and we parted ways.
I've spent the spring working a part time job while waiting for graduate school to start, and throwing bullpens three days a week. my lefty continues to progress each week and i believe im in the mid 80s with a curve and changeup (things are inconsistent though). Righty feels different than it did prior to the injury, but the velocity is there. Numerous friends invovled in baseball think im in the 93-94 range again. I continue to do things to improve my trunk rotation which is horrendous, and with these improvements i think my velocity will only climb. i've always had a good cutter because of the odd way i gripped the ball from my catching days. However one of my old teammates suggested it has a lot of potential considereing it is only 3 mph slower than my 4 seamer. So today i believe i am probably topping out at 94 with a 88-91 mph cutter.
i intend on getting in contact with scouts or teams within the next month or two about tryouts or what other options might be available. (im hoping by than ill be at mid 90's righty and lefty will be be more consistent even if it doesnt climb beyong 85)
any advice would be greatly appreciated, thanks!
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