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A note to pitchers parents

What's on your mind?

by curveballerguy124 » Wed May 19, 2021 1:07 pm

So today I’m gonna go on a little bit of a rant and the thing I'm going to rant about is mechanics.  I want every pitcher‘s parents to know your daughter will continue to progress as a pitcher so long as her mechanics are good.... 

Mechanics are going to be the thing that allows your daughter to continue to get better as she gets older. It’s going to help her learn new pitches and master the pitches she already has. Mechanics allow us to throw with proper spin on the ball and will allow a pitcher to tighten her spin on the ball as she progresses and gets stronger. This in turn will allow her to achieve movement and velocity effortlessly.  Without proper mechanics she will start to force the pitches with her body and begin to muscle the ball often times resulting in a lack of progression or worse yet, injury.

I will be honest when I give lessons I’m not the most technical person. However, the fact that I know how to throw the pitches that I teach with proper spin and movement. It gives me the advantage of being able to describe to the kids how that pitch should feel as it comes out of your hand and what position your body needs to be in in order to achieve that. I'm not for everybody and that's OK by me there are a ton of instructors that know what they are doing out there. So if proper mechanics is not #1 on your instructors list and its all about velocity move on..

If you want to see woman with proper throwing mechanics look up Cat Osterman, Monica Abbot, Rachel Garcia, Yukiko Ueno. I'm sure there are many others but there is a ton of videos on them in slow-mo and broken down analysis. Then find a coach that is going to teach similar to what these women are doing. Then and here is the big part, TRUST THE PROCESS and enforce it with lots of practice!!!  
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by curveball496 » Wed May 26, 2021 9:20 am

I agree mechanics are key. Hit target w/movement. You better be really fast to avoid abuse as you get older- see MLB where 95 is routinely spaceX'd. A couple other pts: 1) softball is retarded (literal definition here) w/respect to employing multiple pitchers. again see mlb. probably been watching too much crappy ucla coaching (recruit them at 12 and i dont need to do much else), the BA's increase significantly each time through, furthermore, there's no constraint on re-entry...not smart, 2) softball generally will not permit catcher/pitcher to call games - arrogance. a good catcher (e.g. posey) will increase a pitching staffs effectiveness considerably. coaches are not intimate to the interaction nor do they permit in-situ adjustment due to hierarchy issues. let the girls think on their own...BoN they're better than guys at it, see IQ scores, 3) too little in-game plan and re-plan is given to the pitching staff. i think this is largely due to "coaches" not knowing much in this arena. In time such optimizations will occur.
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by Capone » Wed May 26, 2021 10:29 am

Agree, mechanics at a young age are super important. trying to "re-learn" at an older age after years of muscle memory is painful :lol:
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by JCole » Wed May 26, 2021 1:18 pm

And that’s why I’m trying to find my daughter a pitching coach NOW at the age of 8 before she picks up any bad habits. Anyone have any recommendations near Rialto/Fontana, CA???
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by curveballerguy124 » Thu May 27, 2021 11:19 am

JCole wrote:And that’s why I’m trying to find my daughter a pitching coach NOW at the age of 8 before she picks up any bad habits. Anyone have any recommendations near Rialto/Fontana, CA???


I am part of powerhouse mechanics but I handle N. Orange County I have no idea if we have someone in the inland empire check the website powerhousemechnics.com
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by jmays02 » Fri May 28, 2021 9:55 pm

JCole wrote:And that’s why I’m trying to find my daughter a pitching coach NOW at the age of 8 before she picks up any bad habits. Anyone have any recommendations near Rialto/Fontana, CA???


Hey Jcole!
I am a pitching coach that serves both Corona\Riverside and Rialto\Fontana. Let me know if you'd like to chat, I work out of Frisbie Park on the weekends and some weeknights.
Instagram @dyamondqueen20
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by Blind Assassin » Mon Jun 14, 2021 9:52 am

For Osterman and Abbott I wouldn't consider illegal leaping as demonstrating proper mechanics. In the end, mechanics are important, but battling overuse is of utmost importance. Don't let your kid throw more than one game per weekend. Don't have them practice pitching daily. Give them at least three months off every year. Let your kid be a kid.
"I don't look for trouble....trouble looks for me." - Five Finger Death Punch
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by curveballerguy124 » Tue Jun 15, 2021 12:56 pm

Blind Assassin wrote:For Osterman and Abbott I wouldn't consider illegal leaping as demonstrating proper mechanics. In the end, mechanics are important, but battling overuse is of utmost importance. Don't let your kid throw more than one game per weekend. Don't have them practice pitching daily. Give them at least three months off every year. Let your kid be a kid.


Osterman and Abbot have amazing mechanics and that should not be overshadowed by their "leaping" they play ISC international rules so what they do in international play is perfectly legal. Moreover, the "leaping" has no effect on their mechanics whatsoever nor does it change their mechanics in any way shape or form. They are just allowed to become more aggressive on their push offs which as a result the pivot foot sometimes losses contact with the ground.

Nonetheless both had stellar collegiate careers at Tennessee and Texas and pitched during a time when BOTH feet had to be on the rubber.....

I agree overuse can be an issue however, pitching with proper mechanics lessens the likelihood of overuse injuries at last n my opinion.
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by Blind Assassin » Wed Jun 16, 2021 7:32 am

curveballerguy124 wrote:
Blind Assassin wrote:For Osterman and Abbott I wouldn't consider illegal leaping as demonstrating proper mechanics. In the end, mechanics are important, but battling overuse is of utmost importance. Don't let your kid throw more than one game per weekend. Don't have them practice pitching daily. Give them at least three months off every year. Let your kid be a kid.


Osterman and Abbot have amazing mechanics and that should not be overshadowed by their "leaping" they play ISC international rules so what they do in international play is perfectly legal. Moreover, the "leaping" has no effect on their mechanics whatsoever nor does it change their mechanics in any way shape or form. They are just allowed to become more aggressive on their push offs which as a result the pivot foot sometimes losses contact with the ground.

Nonetheless both had stellar collegiate careers at Tennessee and Texas and pitched during a time when BOTH feet had to be on the rubber.....

I agree overuse can be an issue however, pitching with proper mechanics lessens the likelihood of overuse injuries at last n my opinion.


Your answer would be great IF you were teaching kids under ISC pitching rules. Leaping is illegal otherwise and holding two pitchers that cheated during their younger years as models of pitching mechanics doesn't speak well. The sad part is that they would have both been extremely good without cheating.

Dragging the push foot off of the pitchers plate vs. leaping from the pitchers plate is the definition of a change in mechanics. If it was no change or no advantage they wouldn't have cheated. By your definition they could easily have dragged and it wouldn't have changed their pitches at all.
"I don't look for trouble....trouble looks for me." - Five Finger Death Punch
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by curveballerguy124 » Wed Jun 16, 2021 12:20 pm

Blind Assassin wrote:
curveballerguy124 wrote:
Blind Assassin wrote:For Osterman and Abbott I wouldn't consider illegal leaping as demonstrating proper mechanics. In the end, mechanics are important, but battling overuse is of utmost importance. Don't let your kid throw more than one game per weekend. Don't have them practice pitching daily. Give them at least three months off every year. Let your kid be a kid.


Osterman and Abbot have amazing mechanics and that should not be overshadowed by their "leaping" they play ISC international rules so what they do in international play is perfectly legal. Moreover, the "leaping" has no effect on their mechanics whatsoever nor does it change their mechanics in any way shape or form. They are just allowed to become more aggressive on their push offs which as a result the pivot foot sometimes losses contact with the ground.

Nonetheless both had stellar collegiate careers at Tennessee and Texas and pitched during a time when BOTH feet had to be on the rubber.....

I agree overuse can be an issue however, pitching with proper mechanics lessens the likelihood of overuse injuries at last n my opinion.


Your answer would be great IF you were teaching kids under ISC pitching rules. Leaping is illegal otherwise and holding two pitchers that cheated during their younger years as models of pitching mechanics doesn't speak well. The sad part is that they would have both been extremely good without cheating.

Dragging the push foot off of the pitchers plate vs. leaping from the pitchers plate is the definition of a change in mechanics. If it was no change or no advantage they wouldn't have cheated. By your definition they could easily have dragged and it wouldn't have changed their pitches at all.


I'm sure you have a vast knowledge of pitching from your many years of being on the mound.....However I still pitch mens fastpitch where I leap for the most part. However sometimes I drag just like the girls do because leaping is very tiring!!! Nonetheless, my "absolutes" don't change those are my mechanics, I still land with a firm front side, I still drive with a strong backside, my arm still brushes against my body at the point of release and my shoulder still rotates inward as I finish.....These very same things you can witness Osterman and Abbott doing flawlessly with every pitch!! Understand something none of that changes when I go from leaping to dragging or from dragging to leaping and from what I can tell none of that changes on them either.

If you would like a demonstration I am at The Softball workshop in Anaheim Mon. Wed and Thursday evenings come see for yourself I'll be glad to show you.

Nonetheless Osterman and Abbott have a picture perfect arm whip and proper throwing technique if they didnt I'm sure team USA would not have selected them to represent our country and they would have been labled cheaters!!
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