Tee Ball Baseball Parents will find the TeeBall Parent Blog to be a valuable source for information, tips, and articles related to teaching your child to play baseball.
Being a baseball parent carries with it the duties and responsibilities of starting your child off correctly. Teaching your child to hit, throw, field and run can be a fun and exciting family activitiy. Subcribe to the TeeBall Parent Blog and get a better insight and understanding of how to help your child.
TeeBall Parent Guide Blog
The Tee Ball Parent Blog features daily posts and updates that provide tball parents with free teeball articles, tee ball drills, and t-ball coaching tips. Our daily posts and archives include hundreds of interesting and informative teeball coaching blogs. Make sure to bookmark or save this site to your favorites so that you can visit us often to gain valuable insight and tips for helping your teeball player learn the game of baseball and improve his skills.
Showing posts with label how to throw a baseball. Show all posts
Showing posts with label how to throw a baseball. Show all posts
I know you are busy. Life is hectic. However, you want to make the most of teaching youth baseball skills to your team, child or youth organization. This article is designed to reduce the amount of time you must invest, to be a more effective coach, teacher, parent or administrator of youth baseball players. The following instruction will provide easy to use methods to teach youth baseball players the proper fundamentals when throwing a baseball.
These baseball throwing fundamentals are designed for parents, managers and coaches to instruct players on properly throwing the baseball to:
1. Improve your throwing accuracy 2. Maximize your throwing speed 3. Improve the speed of the glove to hand exchange 4. Reduce the risk of arm injuries
Holding the baseball
It all starts here! The key to baseball throwing fundamentals starts with holding the ball correctly. The correct way to hold a baseball is using what's called a 4-seam grip. Please note - Pitchers grips can and will vary, as ball movement may be desired to deceive hitters. This grip should be used by all other positions.
I'll take you through the proper way to hold and throw a baseball. I'm constantly amazed at how few players properly hold and throw a baseball. This technique will make your son throw with more velocity, more accurately, and reduced injury risk. You should only use your index and middle fingers and your thumb. Your index and middle fingers should be on top of the ball crossing the widest seams. Your thumb will support the weight of the ball on the bottom of the grip. Don't squeeze the ball, but hold it tight enough so you won't drop it. Leave a little space between the ball and your hand.
Advantages of using this grip:
1. Better accuracy, as the ball is less likely to tail away from your target. 2. Ball will travel further with less effort, as it takes a more direct route to the target. 3. Ball will get to the target faster, as it takes a more direct route.
Releasing the Baseball
The last motion before you release the baseball should be a wrist flicking motion toward your target that creates a backspin on the baseball. Even though it's the last motion in the process, it should be taught and practiced before the rest of the motion as it should be reinforced as the others parts are learned. This motion, combined with the 4-seam grip, will ensure you maximize the above referenced advantages of this technique.
Bringing it all Together with the Proper Upper/Lower Body Movements We'll cover 4 steps in this section to complete the baseball throwing fundamentals technique:
1. Ready Position
Begin by holding the ball in your throwing hand using the 4-seam grip to begin.
Your glove side shoulder and arm should face your target. At this time, your feet should be shoulder width apart and square with your body.
2. Weight Transfer
Your weight should shift to your rear leg (throwing arm side leg). Once your weight has shifted to your back foot, your throwing arm will extend away from your target (4-seam hold, fingers on top, thumb on bottom) while your glove arm extends toward the target. Take a small step toward your target as your arms extend. This will begin the transition of your weight from back to front. Proper weight transition will give you better leverage, thus more power behind your throw. This increases the velocity of your throw.
3. The Throw
Simultaneously:
-Pivot your waist/hips to square with your target -Pull your glove away from the target -Move your arm toward the target (elbow will be above the shoulder).
4. Follow Through
Simultaneously release the ball to its target, continue your throwing arm down (towards the ground) and across your body and follow with your throwing arm leg moving forward toward the target.
Lou Schneider http://youth-baseball-made-easy.com/ Dedicated to providing coaches and parents the tools to teach baseball fundamentals and drills to youth players. Please visit the website for more detailed instruction including illustrations.
How to Teach Throwing to Baseball Players By Dick Birmingham
In the game of baseball correct throwing mechanics are of the utmost importance. If a player can't throw with accuracy he does his team little good out in the field. Players must constantly strive to perfect their throwing mechanics. Few players take the time necessary to become really good throwers. Great pride should be taken when a player can consistently throw to a target.
Key Points in Throwing
The Grip
Many young players grip the ball with their fingers too wide apart. This affects accuracy severely reduces velocity of the throw. The fingers should be about ¼ inch apart (about the width of a yellow #2 pencil). The index and middle finger should lay across the wide seams of the ball. This grip is also known as a 4-seam fastball. The pads of the index and middle finger sit on the seam of the ball. If you think of the ball as a clock, the index and middle fingers should rest on either side of 12 o'clock and the thumb would rest straight underneath the ball at 6 o'clock. There should be "daylight" between the ball and palm of the throwing hand. This is the best grip for achieving straight backspin and avoiding any "tailing" of the ball.
Arm Action
Arm action refers to the path the throwing arm travels from hand separation to release-point and follow-through. Baseball throwers must concentrate on breaking the hands and making a big sweeping motion with the arm in order to stay long with the arm going back to a good power position. Power position refers to the position where the player has the throwing arm back, level with the shoulder or higher, and bent at the elbow. The throwing-hand index and middle fingers should be point up forming a "V". The back of the throwing hand should face the thrower while the palm of the throwing hand should face away from the thrower. Practicing a good power position is essential in becoming a good thrower. The front shoulder should always point at the target and stay closed. As the player turns to throw, the glove-side elbow should be as high or higher than the throwing-side shoulder. The throwing fingers must stay pointing up through release to get good straight backspin. When throwing with a partner, young players should imagine painting a vertical line with their throwing hand from the letters on their partner's hat to their partner's belt buckle.
Throwing To The Circle
Baseball players should always practice throwing on a downward plane to their target. When throwing with a partner, the player should focus on throwing down into "the circle". The circle is an area from the partner's hat, right shoulder, belt buckle, and left shoulder. A player who can throw down into the circle consistently is a good thrower.
Note: A player receiving a ball should always have both hands in front of the chest with fingers pointing out and up. This makes a great target in the center of the circle.
Staying On Line
Throwers should imagine a line running from their pivot foot straight through their target. As they throw, they should separate their arms on the imaginary line being careful not to let the throwing arm pass behind the line. The stride should also be on the line. Any variation from the line will decrease accuracy. As the player releases the ball he should concentrate on keeping his body on the line. Many players spin off the line when they throw instead of following-through toward their target.
Note: The chin MUST point toward the target. Where the chin faces the eyes will face and the body will follow.
Squaring the Pivot Foot
The pivot foot (throwing hand-side) needs to be "square" to the target. If the player starts by facing the target when throwing the pivot foot should be opened 90 degrees toward the target to allow for the closing of the front side (hips and shoulders). Failure to do this can result in poor accuracy and velocity. Many young players do not turn their pivot foot a full 90 degrees to their target. Squaring the pivot foot should be emphasized to all players to ensure correct throwing mechanics.
It has been said many time that baseball is a game of catch, and the team that plays catch the best will usually win. As a coach, teach your players the proper fundamentals of throwing and you will win more games and develop your players.
Pitching is like building a house. You have to start with the foundation, in pitching this is the very basic fundamentals. Before you can even think about throwing different pitches, you have to work on how and where to hold the ball in your hand when it comes to basic playing catch and warming up.
• The ball should be held with very little pressure with your fingers. Most young pitchers make the mistake of sliding the ball back toward the hand. You must keep ball on your finger tips.
• The first time trying to hold the ball with little pressure can be very uncomfortable. Like everything else it takes time and practice.
• This should be done as part of your off season workout and practice routine.
Each off-season should include improving and perfecting your pitches and this starts with becoming comfortable when holding and gripping each pitch. No matter if you are throwing on the side, warming up, long tossing, or pitching in a game, the way you throw is critical. You should pay close attention to your form as bad habits can be created from just playing around in your back yard.
Most people while warming up or throwing just catch the ball and throw the ball back. For example, they may just stand flat footed with shoulders facing the person and never get into the proper throwing position.
1) As the ball is approaching you should start to turn your glove shoulder toward the person throwing the ball. This is so when you catch the ball, you are in a throwing position.
2) Once you catch the ball, you should start the process to start the backward swing of your throwing arm.
3) Once the ball leaves your glove, your front shoulder should be level and pointing toward the person you are throwing to.
4) You will have to develop the comfort level as to how far you bring the ball down during the backward rotation of your arm, before you bring it back to the throwing position.
5) The importance of comfort and the ability to get all the moving parts together so that you are not rushing your delivery is very important. Ideally, the ball should never drop below your waist.
6) When you bring the ball back behind you, keep your shoulders square and the ball must be pointing toward second base with your finger tips on top of ball.
7) Your front shoulder still should be level and as you start your arm forward your glove should start coming toward your chest. You should have to pull your glove through as your proper throwing motion should push it through automatically.
8) Bring your throwing arm to your comfortable arm slot, with fingers on top of the ball with your front shoulder being your guide still pointing toward the other person.
9) The lead elbow should be tucked into your side and pulling motion to bring the throwing arm through the zone.
10) As you're your throwing arm is going through zone prior to release, your arm should be in a L shape if you throw over the top or in more of a 45 degree angle if throwing motion is closer to three quarters.
11) Once you are in position to release the ball, your throwing arm should be extended out as to reach out and touch the other person.
12) At this point you should snap your wrist downward in line with your arm angle and follow through with the throwing arm coming through towards your glove side knee.
End of Practice
Always end on a Positive
Practice makes Perfect
John R Di Nicola coached High School baseball for 12 years and many of players continue on to play junior college, division I, II, III, and several to be drafted.
How can you throw further as an outfielder? The answer is simple. By strengthening the muscles that's involved when throwing a baseball. But there's also an exercise that you can't afford to miss if you want to learn how to throw longer.
In this article you are going to read about special exercises to throw a baseball further.
In baseball you need to be strong from tip to toe. Any weakness in your body will limit your throwing ability more than you think. For the most part it's your core that isn't strong enough. What this means is that you abdominal muscles can't transfer all of the power from your legs to your arm. You could end up using 75% or even 50% of your real throwing power.
This is why you really should do exercises that targets your abs and legs. This is where your power to throw farther comes from.
So what exercises should you do?
There are many exercises that are good. However, when you do an exercise remember to do it explosive.
To develop your core then try to do as many exercises as you can with a medicine ball. This is a great way to build strength in the abdominal muscles and it balances your body as well.
A very good core exercise to develop your ability to throw further is the wood chopper or abdominal twist. You can do this exercise with a medicine ball and it helps you to strengthen the muscles involved when throwing. Click here for a video demonstration.
To develop the muscles of your upper body then there is one exercise that you can't really be without.
I'm talking about long toss. This exercise will help you to quickly add yards to your throwing ability. How to do it?
The best is to try and use a softball or a larger ball for this exercise. To do this exercise you need to be 2 persons. Start at 30 feet apart and increase the distance gradually. You do this to warm up your muscles to prevent any injury. When you reach 250 - 300 feet then keep it here and increase the distance until you can't reach each other. Then decrease the distance so you barely can reach each other and keep throwing at that distance.
You will be able to push this limit if you continue to do this exercise.
How about learning from the MLB Pros themselves? You can access the exercises they use to throw longer and faster. Visit Inside Major League Training to find out more...
