Silly question?

Based on what you are desribing that it is not your fingers but your shoulders, head and glove side arm. If you are throwing right tailing right is opening up, tailing left is throwing across your body sinker for an infielder is not getting in behind the ball and pulling off.

Start working on simple throwing in the out field and long toss pay close attention to your step, shoulders, glove side arm and work on getting a straight trajectory on the ball during long toss. Get away from the infield and in game situations and pay close attention to your throwing and it will all come back.

Appreciate the reply BOF.

Can you explain the "If you are throwing right tailing right is opening up" again?

Thanks

That would mean your glove side shoulder is opening up too early, causing your arm to drag behind your body. Hope that makes more sense.

I think I would agree with BOF in that it sounds more like your footwork than your hand. Maybe you are rushing your throws, so sometimes you throw with your front foot facing too far to the left, causing your front shoulder to open too early. Sometimes you throw with your front foot facing too far to the right, causing you to throw across your body.

Season hasn't started yet, so you have plenty of time to work on your mechanics, rather than getting guys out. Make sure you field the ball, get your feet set, step towards the target and make your throw. It should become 2nd nature to you by the time the season starts.

kt,

I think BOF has some good points and is good advice. Let me throw something else in here as well, particularly about the tailing thrown balls.

Use the technique BOF is describing, but focus on the arm path and pay particularly attention on whether you turn you hand over...either left or right. For the purposes of my description I am assuming you are a righty, but even if you aren't just reverse the descriptions and there you have it.

If your thrown ball is tailing right it could be because you 'turned the ball over'. In other words, you pronated your hand inward and turned the ball over. Which could also be linked to the sinking thrown ball that tails right and sinks.

If the ball is tailing left it could because you got under the ball and rotated your hand to the right, or outward, during the throw finishing with your thumb facing upward (supination).

A thrown ball is straightest when it is held in a 4 seam grip and leaves the hand off the finger tips as much as possible. Rather than rolled off the either the left or right as I described above. When you throw the ball strive to 'stay on top' of the ball and don't turn it over by rotating your wrist or forearm.

After you have thrown the ball pay attention to what angle you hand is...is it facing up or is facing to your right. Ideally, you want your palm to be facing downward, but that depends somewhat on your arm angle. I would focus on keeping your palm facing downward during the second half of your throw.

I would work on simple throwing drills at short distance to get your arm angle where you want it before you move to greater distances.

I hope this helps...

Thank you guys. I now have a better understanding.

If you don't mind, here is a video taken at a showcase over the summer that shows a couple of my throws: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L405eqPcR-I

maybe this will help with the evaluation with the problem I may have?

Your throws look good to me on the video...quick and snappy without much wasted time.

Sometimes after a layoff things don't feel right, but after about 10 days to 2 weeks things will come around. Just work on your basic throws and focus on using good sound mechanics.

You are an infielder, so you know how many different arm angles, body positions, on/off balance, you have to make throws from and the ball will move all different directions...keep at it and it'll all come back...

Thanks Coach Waltrip,

To have the perfect spin on the 4seam a 12-6 follow through with the wrist is needed correct?

Well, in a perfect world yes...but in relation to your arm angle path. So if you are throwing across your body after turning a DP from the SS position your throw will probably be somewhat sidearm, correct? So a 12-6 throw is pretty hard to do.

Just try to keep the palm of your hand flat in relation to your arm path when you release the ball. You are going to have movement, but your goal should be to keep it to a minimum.

If you think about it you will mess it up when playing your postion, so work on the muscle memory with close in throwing type drills and it will all work itself out. Trust your ability and it will all come together for you soon as you have already demonstrated in the past.

Thanks

Not bad.

I thought you're infield work was a little better than your outfield. I think you could work on "gathering" up yourself prior to the throw in the outfield (get behind the ball prior to the catch and let your momentum take you into the throw) and get a better crow hop out there.

I don't know that I'd be too worried about your ball tailing too much in the infield. Just throw it hard and get rid of it quickly. If you have to compensate for any tailing effect you may have you could always aim a little left of your target and it will end up hitting the first baseman in the chest.

Keep working hard.