Welcome to ‘The Mechanics of Throwing a Baseball Accurately’. Your facilitators are Rod French and John Hanratty. We have taken the “Throwing” module from the Level I National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP) baseball coaching certification program and used our experience and expertise to adapt it to the online learning environment.
Our lesson consists simply of the following:
1. Online multimedia instruction, theory and guidance for practicing the skill
2. Online evaluation of the learner’s comprehension of the theory
3. Follow-up: in person evaluation of the learner’s ability to demonstrate the skill physically
Being a psychomotor skill, the evaluation cannot be done completely online. So we are piggybacking our online lesson and evaluation with a hypothetical “in person” evaluation and certification (which is offered in real life by Baseball Canada).
By using the links found in this blog you will be able to obtain information on this session and access to the ED3801 homepage and discussion forum. If you have any questions, concerns or comments please e-mail us directly.
Whether you are new to baseball or have been playing the game for years, we trust you will find this lesson helpful. Good luck and enjoy the session.
John Hanratty Rod French
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INTRODUCTION
Baseball is a game of numerous precise skills, honed and practiced for hours and hours over years of a lifetime from an early age. Many of these skills are quite complex – Hall of Fame outfielder Ted Williams famously stated that hitting a baseball was the most difficult skill in all of sports, noting “Baseball is the only field of endeavour where a man can succeed three times out of ten and be considered a good performer.” But few if any skills are as simple, or as important, as being able to accurately throw a baseball.
How NOT to Throw a Baseball:
Throwing a baseball is the primary essential skill in the game of baseball. Action cannot start without the pitcher putting the ball in play by throwing it toward home plate. Once put in play, fielders usually (but not always) have to throw the ball to get the batter or other runners out, and to at least get the ball back to the pitcher. Without being able to throw the ball accurately, neither pitchers nor fielders (including the catcher) will ever be able to get anyone out, and an inning (or game) could go on forever in theory.
In the video, think about why the style of throw might not necessarily be the optimal style of throwing:
http://video.yahoo.com/watch/178290/866706
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LESSON OBJECTIVES
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Roberto Clemente
Pittsburgh Pirates' Hall of Famer and 12-time Gold Glove winner |
The purpose of this lesson is to provide the basic mechanics behind accurately throwing a baseball. Through a combination of graphics, video, and practical application, you will be shown and given the opportunity to practice how to throw a baseball in much the same way as a six year-old first learns how to throw. The objectives of the lesson are listed on the slide above.
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Ozzie Smith
St. Louis Cardinals' Hall of Famer and 13-time Gold Glove winner |
'You spend a good piece of your life gripping a baseball, and in the end it turns out that it was the other way around all the time.’ Jim Bouton, Ball Four 1970
Throwing a baseball properly starts with the proper grip. Major league pitchers make millions of dollars by perfecting pitches that can drop, dart, curve, float, slide, and seem like they are going faster or slower than they really are. All of these pitches do what they do because of the grip the pitcher puts on the ball. While there are many ways to grip a baseball, there is one way to grip it to get it to go as straight as possible – the non-pitching type of throw – which is the type of throw we are most concerned with.
THE GRIP
There are five essential components to the proper grip:
a) The baseball should be gripped across the seams so that all four seams are aligned.
b) The forefinger and middle finger are one finger-width apart, and across the seams;
c) The thumb is underneath and between the two fingers providing support
d) There should be a slight space between the palm and ball – enough to fit a finger between – with the remaining fingers bent slightly to the side and relaxed.
e) The ball should be gripped like an egg, firmly but softly; don’t crush the shell!
Practice:
Grip Drill: While standing, toss a ball in the air to yourself and catch it with your throwing hand. Practice finding the correct grip as quickly as possible before simulating a throw.
ARM ACTION and BODY MOTION
Once we have the proper grip, we move on to the throwing motion itself, and the combination of arm and body action.
1. Facing your target, place the ball in the glove face down and chest high; feet should be shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent
2. Pivot your throwing hand foot perpendicular to your target. At this point, rotate the glove hand shoulder and hip so that the body is perpendicular to the target, showing part of the glove side and back to the target - this is also known as “closing the door”.
3. The glove foot (foot on the same side of the body as the glove) steps toward the target, the big toe pointed directly at the target. The hands break in a downward, circular motion, with the throwing arm dropping down in a circular motion past the hip with the ball facing the ground.
4. The throwing arm continues to rotate down, past the hip, around and up above the head. The arm rotates in the direction of the target, remaining bent at the elbow with the ball now facing toward second base (away from the target). The ball arrives at its highest point as the glove foot (stride foot) makes contact with the ground.
5. The glove should be extended in the direction of the target with the thumb pointing towards the ground. The glove hand will be drawn back into an area between the chest and waist as the ball is thrown towards its target.
6. As the hips rotate towards the target, the throwing arm rotates bringing the ball to the release point. The elbow should remain above the shoulder with the fingers behind the ball as the arm moves forward. Front foot has landed on the ball of the foot.
7. The throwing arm leads the wrist and fingers; the ball is released slightly above and in front of the head; this motion is known as “fully overhead” or “12 to 6” (corresponding to the numbers on a clock), the most mechanically sound throwing motion which puts the least amount of strain on the throwing arm.
8. After releasing the ball, a full follow through and arm extension will maximize distance and accuracy; bend the back and "throw the shoulder" at the target for full extension. The throwing hand should extend towards the target and fully complete its arc. The back foot should rotate and raise off the ground prior to coming to rest in line with the front foot.
When all of the steps come together properly, the end result should be a smooth, natural motion which results in the baseball arriving accurately at its destination.
In the video (link below), the instructor shows one method of breaking down the mechanics of throwing properly – he starts in the middle of the skill, then adds in the first steps later. The method of instruction and reinforcement is slightly different; however, the mechanics are all the same, and it covers all the same steps.
Practice makes (almost) perfect Accuracy is developed by practicing the mechanics and by paying attention to detail; the more you practice, the more ingrained the mechanics become, so that the skill of throwing becomes second nature.
There are many ways to practice the mechanics of throwing, and dozens of drills from which to choose, as in the previous video. The most common way to practice throwing is to play catch with a partner and have your partner (or a third party, such as a coach) critique or offer suggestions on your motion.
Find a partner and “soft-toss” to each other (throwing at approximately 50% of full power), starting from approximately 10-15 feet apart; gradually moving further apart until you are 30-40 feet from each other, still soft tossing. Make your motion very deliberate and exaggerated – check your grip, rotate your body, point your toe at your target, swing your arm in a big circle down and back and up through, step toward your target and follow through.
Another way that makes it a bit more fun for younger kids is the “2-1 Game”; this can be done after the more deliberate “soft-toss” drill mentioned above.
2-1 Game: Pick a target on your partner (i.e. the chest and face area). Award one point for every ball thrown accurately at the chest and two points for a successful throw to the face area. The first player to 21 points “wins”.
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EVALUATION
Evaluation will take place in two phases.
The practical evaluation will occur sometime after this lesson; it will be in-person and involve a demonstration of the student’s ability to throw an actual baseball under the stated conditions, in the context of a Level One coaching clinic of the National Coaching Certification Program (NCCP). Each learner will make 5 throws and have at least three ‘hit’ the partner in the target or chest area.
The theoretical evaluation will occur online, through a multiple choice test. Please review the following questions and post your answers in an e-mail to the discussion forum.
MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS
- The ability to throw a baseball accurately to a teammate is:
- Desirable but less important than the ability to run or catch
- Essential for success in baseball
- Effective for impressing any spectators
- Difficult when you are facing into the sun
- How you hold a baseball:
- Is a matter of individual preference
- Is the first thing to learn in order to throw accurately
- Is similar to how you hold a football
- Is only important for the pitcher
- To throw a baseball accurately, you should:
- Squeeze the ball as hard as you can
- Let it roll around your palm as loosely as possible
- Hold the ball like an egg, firmly but softly
- Grab it with your fingertips only
- When you start to get ready to throw the ball, the front of your body should:
- Face your target straight-on
- Face down toward the ground
- Be side-on or perpendicular to the target
- Face completely away from the target
- As you complete the throwing motion, your “glove foot” should be pointed:
- Up at the sky
- At your glove
- At your good luck charm
- At the target
- In throwing parlance, “opening the door” refers to:
- Turning your hips to face the target
- Opening your mouth as you throw the ball
- Giving your teammate a chance to catch the ball
- Bending your knees to provide more leverage
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CONCLUSION
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Yogi Berra
Hall of Fame New York Yankees catcher,
and 8-time World Champion |
The objectives of this lesson were as follows:
After viewing the blog, video clips, and Power Point presentation on throwing mechanics, the learner will be able to:
1) throw a baseball unaided to a partner or target 30 feet away with 60% accuracy (practical component); and
2) identify essential techniques and components for teaching others how to throw a baseball accurately (theoretical).
We have provided you with the theory and some basic skills to enable you to meet these objectives. However, like many major leaguers, the degree of success you have with these skills will depend on you and how much you practice. Remember to make it fun and enjoy yourself; after all, “there’s no crying in baseball”.
Hall of Fame catcher Yogi Berra is known as much for his colorful sayings as for his considerable baseball accomplishments. This saying highlights the cerebral nature of baseball – the pace of a baseball game leaves lots of opportunity for players to think about their next action, or to allow their last action to play upon their mind. Baseball requires the physical ability to execute the skill, but it also requires the knowledge necessary to accomplish the skills – and the knowledge to correct mechanical mistakes for the next opportunity.
Ironically throwing can certainly be described as ninety percent mental and fifty percent physical. Mastering the various stages of the throwing skill - the grip, closing and opening the door, weight transfer, follow through - involves knowing the intricacies of the throwing mechanics, and practice, practice practice!
