Pushing the ball

who told you you were pushing the baseball?   I would go back to them and ask for clarification.  Also, if your arm is hurting have you seen a doctor?  I would not let pain go unchecked and rely on someone who has no medical knowledge tell me what was wrong.

Finally does the person who told you you were pushing the ball have real baseball knowledge or they just someone up at the field who purports to have a bunch of knowledge.

Agree with Joes87.  Pushing the ball??  I'm guessing it's how you're releasing the ball?  Not exactly sure what they're talking about.

Bottom line, something is hurting.  Get it checked out.  Chances are:  tight in an area, lacking strength in an area, or your mechanics are off.  Have your parents inquire with the best shoulder Doctors in your area; chances are they will have access to the top rehab & mechanics guy.  These rehab guys are dialed into the "proper mechanics", and they work with professional sports teams in your area.  Good news, they are accessible to everyone, you just need to inquire via the top Doctors. Rest your arm until you've been able to find one of these guys.  The small price of a visit could serve as insurance to protect your arm and season.   Protect.

Been through this with my boys; typically they're tight after a recent growth spurt, strength gain, or their mechanics are getting sloppy.  You'll be fine, but listen to your body, get it checked out. 

Usually when a coach says that he means you are leading with your elbow. Also called getting under the ball or throwing pies. In my experience it usually leads to inflation of the ulnar nerve which could be where your pain is coming from. I would stop throwing and see a doctor immediately. 

I need clarification on what "leading with your elbow" means. It would seem, without further explanation, that all pitchers lead with their elbow.

Instead of allowing the proper kinetic chain/body rotation to bring the elbow into the lead position, the P pushes the elbow into that lead position early.  That's what I think of when I hear/see a pitcher referred to as "pushing" anyway.

cabbagedad posted:

Instead of allowing the proper kinetic chain/body rotation to bring the elbow into the lead position, the P pushes the elbow into that lead position early.  That's what I think of when I hear/see a pitcher referred to as "pushing" anyway.

There is a kid on our HS team that has always done this. He is what I consider a pie thrower. The kid is a big 6'"5 but doesn't throw with good velocity for his size. He hurt his elbow his junior year had to have surgery to reconnect the tendon.  

cabbagedad posted:

Instead of allowing the proper kinetic chain/body rotation to bring the elbow into the lead position, the P pushes the elbow into that lead position early.  That's what I think of when I hear/see a pitcher referred to as "pushing" anyway.

This I can buy. I just think it is a bit of a misnomer. It's really more about early arm rotation than the elbow leading the arm. "Pushing" is more descriptive. I remember a mother bringing her son to me once and telling me that his sports PT said his problem was that he was leading with the elbow. When I asked her to try and show me a way to throw without the elbow leading, she tried to demonstrate some very unlikely throwing mechanisms. So, obviously, this advice went right over her head and she misunderstood (as I would have) what he meant.

Great job with the description cabbagedad. Sorry roothog66, sometimes I forget that everyone isn't familiar with bad coaching lingo! "Leading with your elbow" has got to be the worst description coaches ever use.

best would be if you post a Video.

Also consider getting Austin Wassermans ebook "high Level throwing", he has some good drills for that.

I hesitated to post this as I don't want to minimize the proper pitching form discussion.  In addition if you are experiencing pain, you do still need to go see a doctor...

I noticed that you are here in IL.  Its very early in the season.  Most schools are only two weeks or so into the schedule and most travel teams are just starting up.  Your pain could be related to improper off season conditioning.  I would assuming you just started throwing games or bullpens.  You can't come out of the winter cold without any conditioning and expect to start pitching like you ended last season.  

Hopefully your off season program contains plenty of arm rest along with strength and conditioning.  You need to come out of that period and gradually work up your throwing arm.  Starting with light throwing graduating up to bullpens a few weeks before the season starts.  I do know that a lot of the travel/daddy ball coaches around here are lacking a lot of information on proper arm care during the off season.  Thus many do not have any type of off season program.

Normally in IL you see arm rest from Late Oct through December.  During this time you need to be focused on strength and conditioning.  As you progress into January you will start throwing, but need to be working up to full bullpens by early to mid March.  Even then you will not be in the position to throw a full game until a few weeks into the season.  If you are throwing more then this, or did not properly condition, the source of your arm pain could be due to overthrowing and not your pitching form.

Again, if you are experiencing arm pain, your body is trying to tell you something.  You need to get to a doctor to make sure it is not anything serious. 

Joes87, I did everything you said over the offseason, like strength training and resting my arm. I agree that the cause of my pain may have been rushing into throwing. I have been seeing a doctor the last few weeks and have seen a lot of improvement. I am still pitching for my varsity team and have been throwing bullpens for about 2 months now.

Pain should not be ignored and you must make sure that you have medical attention. One thing that came up in another thread was "long toss" and one variant that really helped my son (and some others) who had poor arm action was to long toss from your knees. It forces you to have good arm action. It's not the ultimate fix but something to try.

Good Luck! 

willymac, at this point I would say you are going to get the advice you need from your doctor.  I would assume he has you in physical therapy.  Make sure you are listening to the doctor and the therapist.  If they are telling you to not throw then don't throw, no matter how much pressure you are getting from the HS coach.