Paralleling Catching Mechanics w/ Pitching and Hitting

Other then long toss I don't see catchers doing the same throwing drills as pitcher and its not just the arm slot. Using some pitcher techniques could improve velocity, however it would likely be at the cost of release quickness.

Ok. I know it sounds goofy. I'm just trying to put things together and find a way to use my lower half better to deliver my POP throw with as much velocity as possible without compromising release quickness. Sometimes I feel like I'm not using my legs and core half as much as I should be on my throws and there is a lot more velocity to be had.

Can you post some videos of game throws? Hard to really provide advice without really seeing what you doing.

Why do you feel your core and legs aren't being used properly?

Do you do "T" drills, line shuffle drills, speed throws and things like that?

I'm sorry, I don't have any game tape. This video is from a showcase I was at last winter. I hesitate to even post it because it is old and there are many errors I've already dissected and spent time correcting, but I'm sure the great minds of HSBball Web will still have helpful input.

 <iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/m1ZOWW_vxN0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> 

The thing I am talking about most is the front leg. Mine looks flat. Should this be more "cocked and loaded" on my big toe?(like a pitcher landing on his toe or a batter's stride before he slams the front heel down) And also, should I finish over top my front leg more, like a pitcher would. I feel like my finish is very short.

Do you do "T" drills, line shuffle drills, speed throws and things like that?[/QUOTE]

The "T" drill I am familiar with, the others not so much.

Sorry for the wordy response, or if I'm making it difficult to understand what I'm talking about. The advice is appreciated though.

The embed didn't work, so here is the link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...ture=player_embedded

Thanks for the link and it's really helpful. Overall I like a lot of what you do and think you're doing a lot of good things. The things I notice are....

1. You're cheating way too much with your left foot being so far forward when you catch the ball. It's a bad habit that's easy to get into for showcases and what not because you want to get that pop time low but you're sending a bad message to the guys timing you. You're telling them that number is due to cheating the front side and it going to throw the validity out the window.

2. In the first couple of throws it looks to me that you have too much weight settled back on your feet rather than having your butt up more to help generate momentum forward. You're last two or three throws get better in this but still I think you have too much weight going backward and now you have to really work to get going forward. Let me know if this doesn't make sense and I'll try to word it differently.

3. I like how you let the ball get deep before you catch it and transfer to the throw.

4. You can tell you got some good feet and can move around really well behind the plate. I think this should be exploited more if you can get more weight off your feet and get it more forward like I'm talking about in number two.

Now as for your question about the front side. I may be wrong on this because I don't know how to watch youtube videos in slow motion but when I hit pause as your front foot lands I'm thinking you're landing with it too far open. You're bleeding off some potential power from your core due to this. The front foot needs to be closed more and open on it's own as the body transitions through the throw.

For your question about finishing over the top I think you need to finish more going to second and not worry about how a pitcher finishes. On all of your throws you never let your right leg come past your left leg. To me this really hurts because you're not following through enough. This also seems to be leading to another problem of your drifting off to the third base side on the throw instead of making sure your momentum is still going to second after release.

Check out this video that was made by our very own Catching 101. This is a great instructional video on throwing by a catcher. Watch the part on throwing to second especially. When this guy and see how his momentum still goes to second after release. A couple of times it's due to his right leg going past his left leg as in he would be able to walk towards second after release. Also, check his front foot from the side and front and see how it's slightly close and opens because of the throw instead of forcing it open like I'm thinking you're doing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v...Lkt8&feature=related

I'm a huge fan of the "T" drills and you can never do them enough. This is what you need to do to help learn how to close the front side and not cheat with the left side on getting quicker throws.

The line shuffle drill will help you work on getting more momentum towards second and should seal the deal on the front foot coming open too soon. Paint a straight line or use the foul line in the outfield. Start with you splitting the line like you would in a "T" drill. Get a partner about 90 - 100 feet away and start with ball in glove or a third person toss you the ball in your squat. Come out of your squat like you would in a game and land on the line like you would on the "T" drill but take 3 - 4 shuffle steps toward second from the power position - throwing arm up and facing back / front side elbow pointing at partner - and then throw. Once you throw the ball take a couple of follow steps on the line towards your partner.

Speed throws just helps seal the whole package together. Get a partner about 50 - 60 feet away and start with ball in glove in squat. Come out and fire a throw down to partner who is in a squat. He catches the ball and comes firing out back to you. Once you let go of the throw bounce back a step or two and get back in squat for his throw back to you. Really work on doing this as fast as you can and get your mechanics repeatable from this. It's a good idea to do this one on a painted line as well.

Hope all this stuff makes sense and if not let me know and I'll try to explain it better. Other guys will be along soon to provide some better stuff as well.

Thanks, coach2709. That is a very helpful response. After I saw the video for the first time I was pretty irritated with myself at how much I cheated. I feel it ended up hurting me more than anything. I will keep your drills in mind in the future. I especially like the sound of the shuffle drills. I feel those will be very beneficial to me.

I'll kind of paraphrase a concept I took away from watching Dave Weaver's video (www.catchingcamp.com)...

Anything that takes your momentum anywhere other than directly at your target is going to slow down your delivery and impact your accuracy. The T drill is very good for addressing this issue.

If you have never seen it, I highly recommend the DVD above. Xan Barksdale's site (catching-101.com) also has some very good material.

Rob T that's a great point about doing anything that takes away momentum from the target. That's pretty much what I wanted to say but you did a better job of it.

I think everyone covers things well... Coach gives a good assessment of the video, Rob adds the momentum issue. As CPNM alludes to, you can't try to get the same load or torque that you can with pitching and hitting - you'd lose precious time. The only thing I can add is that you've still got perhaps too much of a circle to your receive-and-throw motion as opposed to a more efficient straight back/straight through like you see on the 101 vid. Perhaps that's one of the things you mentioned that you already cleaned up.
I have to admit that catching mechanics aren't my strong suit. It would be great to hear from a few others who are currently logged on who have "catcher" as part of their screen name. Come ooonnnn..

Thanks for all of the great advice everyone. I especially like the link to coach Weaver's site, Rob T. That was the first time I'd been to it and really enjoyed reading his material. Some of the advice I have heard before, but I guess that makes the importance of correcting it more obvious! Thanks everyone and I look forward to any other advice to be posted.