Pitching stride over 100% for 2017?

I am not an expert/instructor but do know a bit about pitching.  Most kids his age don't have a long enough stride, so I would say it is a good thing as long as it is natural.  In general, it means he is using his lower body and not just his arm and that will bode well for him as he gets bigger and stronger.  Again, if it is his natural stride, I certainly wouldn't worry about it.

You will hear lots of pro/con, but it's only good if it works.  Many MLB pitchers have strides over 100%.  My son's stride is over 100%, to 7 feet at times.

If his velocity is good, and he can locate, and his motion is repeatable, then stick with it.

Scouts won't care how long his stride is.  They mostly care about his velocity.

The significance about "striding your height" at least, is the foundation of where the term, "sneaky fast" comes from...So its a good thing to at least stride your height. So the closer the to the plate where the release point is gives the impression that a FB for example gets on the batter faster. May only show 85 on the gun but appears to the batter as 88. Called sneaky fast and usually comes from a stride of 100 % or greater. Hope this helps.

That's certainly part of it, but it's also a question of using the lower half of the body to generate more speed via momentum toward the plate.   Maybe the most famous practitioner of this kind of exaggerated stride is Tim Lincicum, who used to be able to get 95mph out of a rather small (by MLB standards) body.  The problem for a kid with a big stride is that it's a challenge to control all those moving parts. Just taking a straight line toward the plate is a lot tougher than it looks.  Getting the lower half to synchronize properly with the upper half is even more difficult, and without that the kid will have trouble with both control and velocity.  So back to the OP, yeah, the long stride is a good thing, but it's probably going to require some work to stay sharp.

A 7 foot stride by a 5'10 pitcher is amazing.

In our recently completed All American game with the top pitching prospects for next year's draft, the top was 7'1. This included pitchers up to 6'7 tall.

PGStaff, 

My son pitched in his first PG tournament in Atlanta this past weekend. Hasnt taken his black crowned/white billed PG hat off yet.

As some have mentioned above, a long stride is a positive factor with two major pitching components if done correctly:  first if you stride long, you develop more momentum (weight shift) onto the front leg, that if sequenced properly will transition from the legs, hips,  to torso, and ultimately into arm whip (arm speed), this is what creates velocity, and the difference between what some call a "free and easy" versus "max effort" style of pitching.  The second benefit is what some call "visual velocity" whereby the closer you are to the hitter at ball release, the faster the ball appears, or gets to them (think Randy Johnson or Aroldis Chapman).

One big caution to the above,... a long stride can be a bad thing!  If the core strength, hip flexibility, or even ankles are not developed / or strong enough to support the long stride, you actually have a negative effect.  Things to look at are: where on his front foot is he landing?..., does his front leg brace up and not leak into ball release?..., and what angle is his back in relation to the ground at ball release?...  If any of these are lacking then you will see negative results, and a shorter stride is in order, until those issues can be resolved. 

Also, I was unclear in your post if his stride length is being measured without actually throwing a ball...if so, you may want to update us on the results after an actual bullpen is thrown from an elevated mound, at game speed.

David Robertson, 5'11" Yankee pitcher releases the ball 7' away (indicative of his stride length) per Trackman.

According to Trackman's measurements taken in one American League park last season, Robertson, with his exceptionally long stride and reach, released his fastball seven feet from in front of the pitching rubber -- the largest average extension Trackman measured in that park. The average MLB fastball extension was five feet, 10 inches.

So, at 5'10", this would suggest that most MLB pitchers throw at less than 100% of their height.

According to SportsScience, Aroldis Chapman 6'4" has a stride length of 120% of his height, or 7.5 feet.

That ESPN link is dead, try this.

From one of my son's better pitching coaches (when he was younger) when I asked him about extending his stride length. "don't worry about it his body (legs) are not strong enough to support his frame landing so it will naturally lengthen as his body develops"  He was correct, 

It is a non teach IMO, particularly for younger kids.

Back foot slider... yep.  He's had 3 pitching workouts in the last 10 days (on top of his core strength training, speed & agility training he does multiple times/week.)  His trainer is VERY protective of pitching arms and none of the pitchers are throwing balls during the workouts.  So none of the workouts have been with a ball.  They have been with a glove in the left hand and a rag in the right hand - if you saw "Million Dollar Arm" it looks like the workout the players from India were doing at USC.

Son is a Center Fielder who has no problem throwing a rocket from CF to home so I'll be very curious to see what happens on an elevated mound once they start throwing pitches.

I sure appreciate all of the feedback!

PG Staff... That really helps me with perspective! 

Son's trainer told us last week that a fellow player we know who trains at the same facility (6'3" or taller, committed to Nebraska and just finished Area Code Games) has a 7' stride. 

I appreciate you putting the numbers into context for me.  It'll be interesting to see what happens when live pitching begins this winter.

Many thanks!

My late bloomer 6' 6" 196lb 2015 son is pitching with a stride length of 118% of his height, or 7.6 feet.  He is training with his pitching coach at 123% of his height, or 8 feet.

His body is just now becoming strong enough and his stride length has significantly increased.

Is23h... I can't even comprehend what that must look like!  I was surprised watching my son's legs! 

Trainer said he's worked with players for a year who haven't picked up the natural motions my son picked up on the first night of pitching work.  So I'm cautiously optimistic this may be a good fit for him. We'll see.  Sort of funny how this all came about since my son never really wanted to pitch - ever.  He's loving the pitching workouts now though!

In November (after Fall tournaments end) he'll start on a Velocity training program so I'll be curious to see where it takes him.

Thanks for sharing your son's stride!  I hope good things happen for him!

All good posts.....CAGIRL - please update us when he is throwing a ball from the mound, be interested to see the results.  As BOF noted, the stride is often confused as it relates to how it happens, many actively try to stride longer by reaching out with their lead post leg, this is not ideal.  The stride (whatever natural length it should be) is a result of power, or momentum created out of hand break...it is a "non-teach".  When young pitchers try to reach out with their lead leg, or are out of control lunging towards home, you normally find problems.

Back foot slider - I will!  Thanks for your opinion, too.  I'm really curious to see if this is going to be a good fit for him?  I'm thankful he has a year behind him of strength training upon which to build good habits!

His trainer and I were laughing the other day how we just accidentally stumbled across this -  and how he just had 2 of his players commit to big D1 programs as pitchers - and none of us were ever looking at my son as a pitcher - nor was son looking at himself as a pitcher.  Could be a fun year - no matter what happens!

is23h,

We have been using TrackMan at several events this year.  I suppose anything is possible, but if your son reaches 8 foot extension he will be more than 2 feet ahead of most Major League pitchers. And nearly a full foot better than the top reading we had the last two years. That would include several that were drafted in the first round.

I'm not saying any thing is not true, but TrackMan data is probably different than other ways of measuring extension. The key is how far can extension be while pitching effectively. Many MLB pitchers stride is under 100% of their height.

Anyway, if he gets anywhere close to 8 foot, make sure you get TrackMan to record it. He will definitely be the record holder.

PGStaff - Sent you a PM

Several of you indicate that you believe the stride is a non-teach, if I'm reading your posts correctly.  I guess that may be a good thing if son is starting there during his first 3 pitching lessons - assuming that's his natural stride for his frame or long legs?

Looking forward to the months ahead to see what develops when we actually put a baseball into the mix!

Originally Posted by CAGIRL:

Several of you indicate that you believe the stride is a non-teach, if I'm reading your posts correctly.  I guess that may be a good thing if son is starting there during his first 3 pitching lessons - assuming that's his natural stride for his frame or long legs?...

The reason I think it’s a non-teach is because it’s only a guideline, and therefore isn’t something that can be said is right or wrong for any pitcher.

Stats4Gnats... Makes sense to me!  If there were only one correct answer, everyone would look the same, eh? 

I'm very happy with the trainer my son sees - he recognizes that different pitchers have different styles - which of course includes stride length!

SultanofSwat - very interesting data. 

It made me wonder what percentage my son was at right now so I did the math (hopefully correctly.) Since he's about 2-3 inches shy of a 7-foot stride, and he's 5'10" it seems he would be at 120% or just under that.

Trainer is having a bullpen session later this weekend and wants my son there for it to see what he looks like on an indoor mound... so we'll see.

Thanks for the info!