pictures now available

Yes, I'd be interested in seeing these photos. Could you send them to me at
stylemismatch @ yahoo.com

Also, would anyone be interested in me putting them on the web to aleviate the need to email them?

i loaded them last night.. i will email to you tonight along with a little caption on each to explain.... i took pictures of the extend the arm receiving style compared to mine on pitches that are the same location also...

you'll have them tonight, and thanks for the help!

catchaprospect,

I requested the video and pics as well several weeks ago and have not received them...can you send them to me as well? Thanks!

Me 2 please. bddfc34@yahoo.com

I would also like to get the pictures if I may please.

cjant1@sbcglobal.net


Thanks

Would love to see your technique! Thanks!

robert.heckerl@gmail.com

I would love to see them also!

ccore17@sbcglobal.net

me too...cj_wilk@moodyisd.org

One more...

tasmit1@gmail.com

Thanks!

i just sent 3 emails to everyone that asked for them

Catcha:
I PM'd you my email address last week, but maybe you didn't get it. Could you send the pictures to rob@oregoneducation.org ?
Thanks!

catchaprospect --

I also sent you a PM. If you have a chance, could you send the pictures to oak7@cox.net?

Many thanks.

Chris, thank you for all your efforts. I really like the way you are teaching - it is so logical I'm surprised I have never seen it before.

My initial thought when you first posted was what on earth is this guy talking about - now seeing it, I think this is something that I will review with my son and have him start working on.

Thanks again!

if anyone has the capability to post the pics.. feel free to do so

thanks

quote:

if anyone has the capability to post the pics..

I put the photos and notes that go with them on a quick and dirty web page which is viewable at:

http://www.geocities.com/stylemismatch/catching/

(It's a free site on geocities so it's got ads on the right hand side that can be closed to view the page full sized)

thanks for posting.... hope everyone enjoys them

OK, now for a question on the receiving techniques. I agree that receiving the ball by "extending" as shown in these photos is bad form and looks horrible. But how is receiving the ball "deep" as pitctured better than using a smooth body sway and receiving the ball near the centerline of your body? As catchingcoach has explained, the sway motion probably won't even be noticed by the umpire if you finish it by the time the ball is 12 - 15 feet out. I don't pretend to know as much about catching as you or catchingcoach, but I'm starting to form the opinion that there is more than one good way to receive, as long as it's smooth and looks 'natural'. In any case, keep the information flowing - I appreciate the chance to learn and pass on information to my 14 year olds.

i dont think swaying is bad, it can give the umpire a look at the pitch... im just used to not moving anything than my glove... the only problem in swaying is that kids will overdo it.. instead of shifting slightly, ive seen kids almost turn sideways with their shoulders when shifting.... i think the point to stress is subtle movements will look more natural as you receive the ball-- less might just get you more

the 2 pics show the exact same location... less movement gives an illusion that it was a better looking pitch (at least i think)...... i think also just by setting up with your knees out instead of collapsed in will make it look like you are receiving more towards the center of your body

Only issue I'd take is the inside pitch. My experience tells me that the catcher (at least at the HS level) is going to have some "give" with that pitch. I agree that where you show the pitch being caught looks better, but if the mitt gives some with the pitch, it ends up looking really bad.

heres the trick... you still let the glove give.. but as it hits your glove, you let it give and bring it toward the middle of your body by moving the glove about 6 inches.... you let it give at an angle towards your body.... i know what you were thinking - if it gives, then it goes away and out of the zone... this way prevents that

quote:

Originally posted by catchaprospect:
heres the trick... you still let the glove give.. but as it hits your glove, you let it give and bring it toward the middle of your body by moving the glove about 6 inches....

One of the most important things I teach my catchers is to learn a whole new way to view the strike zone. A way that is very different then anything thay have ever heard before. A way that if they embrace this idea and technique will answer many questions about why calls go the way they go some times as far as balls and strikes.

The technique is simply, "View the strikezone through the eyes of the umpire."

What I want them to do is view the strikezone as if they are seeing it through a camera mounted on the top of the umpires mask. This camera will show you exactly what the umpire sees, and as important what he hears. You will see what you, the catcher, are doing in front of him, and how you make each pitch look after you catch it.

Now, with that in mind lets follow the umpires view as he tracks the pitch described above to the glove.

The ball leaves the pitchers hand and starts toward the plate. About 30 feet from the plate your view tells you that this pitch will be somewhere from the middle of the plate in toward this right handed batter.

20 feet out you see it will be maybe 6 inches from the edge of the plate to the edge.

10 feet from the plate it is clearly tailing in and you can tell it will be right on the black

Right in front of the plate it keeps tailing in and now it is about 3 inches inside the black.

And then the umpire SEES the ball hit the catchers glove, and HEARS the ball hit the catchers glove, and then SEES the glove move 6 inches toward the middle of the plate.

Remember now...the move of most of the 6 inches happened after you HEARD the ball hit the glove...

Now from the umpires perspective, what does all that glove movement toward the middle of the plate after he heard the ball hit the glove say to him about what then catcher thought about the quality of the pitch...

Remember to reposnd as the umpire with that view.

Anyones thoughts??

We have all seen the kid who frames just about every pitch, I have no data to support this but I believe for every ball that he frames and is called a strike, there are 10 srikes that end up being called a ball. To me, the receiving of the ball should look like a natural movement with no/little "over-selling".

I can only speak to what my son is taught to do - although he has terrific catching instruction.

He is taught NOT to move the glove toward the strike zone after catching a marginal strike. He is taught to try and catch the ball with as little hand/arm movement as possible, by swaying the upper body slightly, then "sticking" the pitch.

On the catch his glove is supposed to be held a beat (and a beat only - too long and you show up the ump.) He is supposed to hold it right where he caught it, but he is taught to try and catch inside pitches on his fingers and outside pitches on his thumb, just enough so that it minimizes how far he has to sway, but not so much that the ball pops free.

I agree with catching coach (and I have confirmed this with umpires) that when umps see the glove move to the strike zone after the catch, they think the catcher must have known it was a ball, and so that's what they call.

Also, it is not good for the ever-important relationship between ump and catcher - an aspect of the position that my son works on very intentionally.

Watching a great receiver in a tight baseball game is a thing of beauty. It is one of those many subtle nuances in the game of baseball that so many casual observers have no idea about, but which make the game so endlessly fascinating.

i'll try to video rec on my phone and try to email that to you.... its not a jerking motion towards your body... its extremely subtle, and if done correctly, no one knows you're doing it but yourself.. i'll try tonight after my camp

quote:

Originally posted by catchaprospect:
its not a jerking motion towards your body... its extremely subtle, and if done correctly, no one knows you're doing it but yourself.

Whether it is jerky or subtle it doesn't matter. If the glove continues to moves after the ump HEARS/SEES the ball hit the glove there will deffinately be someone else besides the catcher that know your doing it.

The question is if you watch a catcher using this technique from the umpires view, why would the umpire not see the glove moving after the ball hits it? That is the question that needs to be answered.

i'll try to get video from in front of the catcher (pitchers view) and behind catcher (umps view) to show

CP, I think an overhead view would help illustrate your technique. Thanks for your input.

Catchaprospect,

Could you please email me the pictures with the captions. I cannot open the geocities site.
clabeots@baraboo.k12.wi.us

There's a catching instructional video available that shows receiving from the umpire's view. The video shows what it looks like when receiving is done incorrectly and when it is done correctly with explainations for each, all done from the umpire's view. All areas of the strike zone are covered. The website for the video is www.completecatcher.com.
For more information visit www.poweralleyonline.com

I would love to see the techniques. Very interested! Can you please send them to vla1523@yahoo.com

Thanks! great pics! Helped out alot!!!!!!

if anybody still has these pics can u send them to me at allstarcatch31@yahoo.com thanks

ugcatcher

I just forwarded them to you. Hope you got them.

Please send pics also to: baseballcraze@gmail.com...thanks!