Throwing vs Pitching in FastPitch



|Throwing vs Pitching in FastPitch |

|In teaching beginners how to fastpitch a softball it's critical to let them know that there is a difference between throwing and pitching. Throwing, |

|involves mechanics and is the basis for learning a smooth, flowing, rhythmic, stress free, delivery. Pitching is the art of applying various ball-throwing |

|and placement strategies in a game or competitive situations to get batters out. |

|For beginning pitchers, learning the throwing part can be very frustrating. It takes a lot of time to coordinate the multiple body parts involved to |

|accomplish the skill. Getting legs, trunk, and upper body to work smoothly in a pitching-dance routine takes a lot of effort. |

|Two of the hardest things for many youngsters to develop is to master the full range of free body motion and the self confidence required to just throw the|

|ball without aiming or over powering the pitch. Free joint movement is restricted by tension and a lack of confidence. It's the source of the old do you |

|teach speed or control first question. Good coaches teach good mechanics first and let the speed and control then take care of themselves. The Ground Power|

|coaches teach rhythm and timing first and let mechanics naturally happen. |

|Frustration can set in as young players are pushed to learn pitches and other pitching ball management techniques before they have mastered basic ball |

|throwing. Athletic skills are best learned from a progressive sequence of elements from the simplest to the complex. Be honest with young pitchers and let |

|them know what is ahead on the learning curve. Let them know that becoming proficient pitchers may take years and that they have to learn how be good |

|throwing mechanics first so they have the tools to pitch. |

|Regarding pitching strategies, there are several major elements a pitcher and catcher must take into consideration every time the pitcher throws a ball. |

|For instance, following an evaluation of the batter, taking into account such things as leg positioning in the box - up/deep etc., how and where and at |

|what height the bat or hands are held, the foot speed of the batter, the position in the batting order, and other characteristics. The pitcher/catcher must|

|develop their defensive "ball-throwing" strategy. In thinking through this situation they may consider the following regarding each pitch and or the |

|sequence of pitches to be thrown. Most importantly, they must be thinking together and agree on the strategy to get the batter out. |

|Ball Movement: what kind of pitch, drop rise-fastball-curve in/out, change |

|Location: high, low, in, out, down the middle |

|Speed: fast, slow, medium, or other |

|Deception how to disguise the pitch, how to set up the strikeout pitch in a sequence of pitches, changes in speeds-location, using back to back same pitch |

|Control: confidence in being able to do mechanically what you intend to do in 1-4 above |

|What the umpire is calling and the strike zone of the day. |

|Your own teams strengths and weaknesses |

|The game situation at the time |

|The other teams strengths and weaknesses |

|The coaches instructions |

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|It's obvious that mastering the techniques involved with the various pitching elements, takes practice and lots of it. Too many beginning pitchers are |

|taught or try to shortcut the learning of the mechanical throwing delivery basics and rush to throw the rise ball or some other movement pitch. Then they |

|and their mentors wonder way nothing works and the pitching experience turns into a horrible emotional experience. There is no short cut to learning the |

|mechanics of throwing before you learn the subtlety of pitching. |

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