My Video

OK.....?

Maybe I didn't make it very clear. I just wondered if anyone could offer suggestions mechanically or anything of that nature.

Where's the video?

Oh wow. I guess that would help.

http://video.berecruited.com/v...etes/341598/38719020

OK JP, first and foremost congratulations on the grades...you are number 1 in my book. (and apparently others) Nice Job!

Back to the video. First I am not big on these recruiting sites as the video is very fuzzy and too far away and too fast to really see much. I would get closer to you and fill the frame in and then do a slow motion segment where someone can really see your mechanics better. (and so can you)

Even in the fuzziness - I can see is this.

You have a tremendous amount of untapped energy (velocity) in your delivery if you work it. There are lots of inefficiencies. I am not sure how hard you throw but you can surely throw A LOT harder. Specifically:

1. "Bend your back" (I am sure you have heard this a few times) Get through the ball. You seem to give up when you really need to finish the job at the end.

2. You don’t properly load up at the start of your delivery and then you rush through it. Load up then explode.

3. Hips open early and arm comes through way too early. You are throwing with your arm and not your body.

Go here and look at some of these guys…closely. Take a look at Nolan Ryan and some others. (many are not that good but search around) Look at foot strike where the rest of their bodies are. You will see one common thing. Most good high velocity pitchers use their body chain, it starts with the legs and at foot strike the arm is back and is whipped through by starting with the hips. (Trust me you are not the only HS pitcher like this)

http://www.pitchingclips.com/

If you have a good pitching instructor (NPA or not) he should have you working on this stuff. Frankly I think it is a good thing to work with several instuctors as you will learn different things from different guys. There are other things but this would be a good start for you.

BTW looks a little muddy to be throwing off of that mound you are on. Also edit your in game video. A coach wants to see you pitching not the infielders throwing the ball around. Get a simple video editing suite and cut out all of the other stuff. You can use it to slow down your other video also. Remember if a coach gets to your video you want to make a good impression. There are some threads here with great advice on how to do these. Keep them simple but to the point.

Good Luck!

BOF,

Thank you so much for taking the time to watch and write such a well thought out post. I work on my mechanics a lot but its often helpful to have a fresh perspective. As far as velocity, when I'm on I'm usually 83-84 on a JUGS. If I can gain some velocity, that would be great as you can see I'm right around that threshold of if I threw a little harder I'd see some d1 opportunities.

Do you think the hip issue could be due to a lack of hip flexibility? This is something I've been working on and improving.

I'll be working on these things as soon as I get in the bullpen.

Thanks again.

1. Forward Set up, doesnt allow you to get back.

2. Front leg lift is in front of body. Needs to be to backside chest ( n i p p l e).

3. Lift foot gets tucked under leg and is behind knee on descent to plate.

4. Front side arm path is forward and opens front side early, pulls hand under ball.

5. you never get on your backside. Ball should separate over the rubber and behind your front leg. Think about separating with your back leg being tall and backside knee going to plate.

You are a tall kid so use your height. Everything should be loose with hand finishing on outside of left knee.

another thing:

Pitch from the middle to the rubber or on the 3rd base. Pitching from the left side of the rubber is a quick fix and it will help improve your line to the plate.

I'm with BOF you lose quite a bit from knee lift. It's like someone wanted to get you thinking to get the hips moving but forgot about posture..for comparison look at this vid and see how the loading and posture differ from yours
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BtnHOkX1gk
(This a college freshman who throws 90)
When you knee lift you are already moving forward (Pretty much leaning forward) and have to get your foot down or completely hose your timing..doing that is robbing you of velocity. What has your NPA guy told you about this?

Jdfromfla those are great mechanics.

JPontiac Jd's clip shows excellent mechanics.

I can definitely see that I need to close my hip. Everything else I think I can definitely work on. However, I'm at a loss as far as trying to close my hip. Can anyone offer me any ideas on drills or anything of the like to work on this?

JPontiac,

Good comments from BOF and JD. I'm an NPA guy and can put some of that into NPA terminology.

With regards to BOF's comment to bend the back... Ideally, as you come out of delayed shoulder rotation you transition into "stack and track" where your head and shoulders are "stacked" upright and the low back is arched and in a momentary isometric load. About the same time that the arm whips forward, the low back should release and your trunk should flex forward. In your case, you continue to hold that load in the low back. You're cheating yourself out of that last little bit of "oomph" to accelerate the arm.

The other part I would comment on is what JD mentioned - posture. The NPA talks about posture and balance as keeping head over center of gravity (aka belly button) through the stride. But they also talk about staying behind the front hip into foot plant. In other words, they want you to lead with your front hip through the early part of the stride. That creates more of a load from which to explode and it also sets up a posture that will more likely lead to late shoulder rotation. In your case, it does appear that you get the shoulders out front too far too soon. If you know of the Hershiser drill and the cross-over drill, these would be excellent to help practice leading with the front hip.

Step behinds would simulate nicely what you aren't doing, it'll get the hips moving first, keep your posture where it needs to be, load from knee lift..yep that would be a great drill to start with imo. In addition to Rogers drill suggestions. Maintain the other conditioning efforts, particularly arm stuff (Means a little more training effort yes). Reason being that when you correct these small issues you will be delivering with better velocity..your job..make sure your body is up to it (So don't slouch the diet either)

Bobble..thanks for the props
JP..I also want to tip my cap at your grades Super Job!! Keep them that way..Living in Lafayette (My sister does too..small world) are you interested in becoming a Boiler Maker? Your grades speak loudly..have you made any inquiries?

Big thanks goes out to BOF, jd, Coach Steeley, and Roger Tomas for the help.

Roger you really did put it into terms I can better understand. Since those thoughts are familiar to me it will be easier to practice since you worded it that way.

I'll be working on these things in my next bullpen, and I'll let everyone know if there are any tangible improvements or if I have any further questions. I've already been working in the mirror.

As far as being a BoilerMaker, I'd love to. I attempted to email the coach but never did receive a reply. I've had similar non-successes in contacting just about every Big Ten coach. If I had a legitimate (and affordable) chance to play at Purdue it would be difficult to turn down, I'll say that much.