Video

Nice to see a pitching video done from a good tripod.

Lands on his heel. Needs to follow thru toward the plate. Seems very consistant whch is good. Looks quite good overall to me.

I think this pitcher has a lack of momentum and a short stride. He also strides to the throwing arm side and, on some pitches more than others, this leads to a late posture change at release as the upper half tries to get back inline with the target.

I think the pitcher also needs more practice pitching from the stretch. He pitches from the wind-up with a runner on 2B which I assume means there was a runner on 3B. I'm guessing that's because he's more comfortable and/or consistent throwing from the wind-up. But pitchers usually throw more pitches from the stretch than the wind-up. Certainly the more critical pitches thrown are those thrown with runners on base. So it's imperative that he get more comfortable and better throwing from the stretch.

It doesn't look like he is getting much from his core, mostly arm. As already posted he lands on his heel and strides toward his throwing side. He also appears to land with an open foot spending his hips and shoulders all at once.

Thanks for the replies. Just to make it clear Jared is not yet a "pitcher." He is a thrower. He hasn't had a lot of time to work on it, so he goes out and throws occasionally when called on to do so. My dad is trying to line him up with a pitching coach because he has potential and is probably going to be a starting pitcher next year. Not much technique, but he can still reach 80 mph on the juggs, so it is time to get him to think about and apply some good technique to save his arm and get more velocity. His best pitch is actually a 76 mph slider. The reason his fastball isn't faster is #1 because of his grip (fingers on side, not top) and #2 lack of explosion toward the plate in the lower half. I appreciate the comments. I'll have to review the video a few times with him to see if he can see these things himself and evalute how he can improve in these areas. He is definitely not getting enough of his body into the pitch and he knows that, but it's hard to change unless you get a lot of practice at it.

As far as pitching from the stretch, he took the mound with 1 out and bases loaded. I think his coach prefers they pitch from the windup in that situation because all of the pitchers on his team do that as well. He has pitched from the stretch before. Last week he started and pitched 6 innings striking out 10 and giving up 2 runs, so he worked from the stretch during that game.

What's with that little hop he does after each warmup throw and in the later game pitches?

quote:

Originally posted by micdsguy:
What's with that little hop he does after each warmup throw and in the later game pitches?

I asked him about the hop and it goes hand in hand with the way he is striding toward his throwing side (instead of straight to home plate) and why his stride was so short.

I watched him scratch away at that area before he ever threw any warm-up pitches. In his own words he basically "gave up" on getting it the way he wanted. That mound had already been used by six other pitchers that day including two lefties and he said it was too screwed up to be able to fix right then. So he started throwing. He said that the spot he was landing in was dug out pretty good and he tried filling it in but wasn't comfortable with his landing spot and was afraid to roll his ankle, so he used the hole that was dug in. You can tell from the video that there is a lot of loose dirt. Anyway, the hop is because he is throwing across his body (landing foot to third base side) and momentum toward first base side, so the hop is to prevent falling even further to first base.

The whole situation is a little screwed up. I told him he should make it okay for him before he throws, but I also know how mangled the mound can become. How do you and your pitchers solve this problem... getting the mound comfortable for the individual pitcher? I would like to be able to pass it on so he doesn't have this problem in the future.

Okay, good explanation about the hop. I just thought he was a bit over-"wired."

quote:

but I also know how mangled the mound can become. How do you and your pitchers solve this problem... getting the mound comfortable for the individual pitcher? I would like to be able to pass it on so he doesn't have this problem in the future.

Good question. Why don't you start a thread here on that subject.

It looks to me he is falling off to the 1st base side. His energy should be directed more toward home plate. I think a longer stride with the foot-plant starting the hip turn followed by shoulders. He should have his arm up in the throwing position at foot-plant. I think Lincecum mechanics to be pretty good. I also like Oswalt's, Josh Beckett's and Nolan Ryan's.

Hey, it looks like he isn't staying closed for as long as possible which prevents him from using all his momentum and power.

Like everyone mentioned- he should follow thru to the plate more, maybe take a bigger stride also, but make sure to stay closed. This can be done by pointing the heel of your front foot at the plate and then whipping your body and arm around.

There is really just no explosion to the plate. He gets into a good, balanced kick, but then he strides short, clips his arm action short, and rolls off to the first base side of the mound. He is far too upright for my tastes as well.

I'd like to see him unlock his hips, then come out of the kick more powerfully. His arm's track should be straighter to the plate, and his release point should be further out front. Make him work on reaching more to the target, then finishing his arm action over his left knee. This will help him extend to the target and also work on folding at the waist so that he gets the most out of his trunk rotation.