Developing Exceptional Movement Pitches

Hey There Friend!

Creating movement pitches that have TRUE movement resulting in sharp, late break take lots of time and WORK to develop.

When learning a movement pitch, you should expect that it will take weeks, months and even years to master if you want the results to be EXCEPTIONAL!

In this post, I'm sharing 5 key components that are needed to create movement pitches that are deceptive to hitters.

1. Correct Spin

The first step in creating exceptional movement is to get the ball to spin/turn in the correct direction.

Developing correct spin is something you should expect your pitchers will have to invest A LOT of time learning. There are no short cuts to speeding up the process of spin development. It will always take time, consistent practice and attention to details!

It's important for EVERYONE working with pitchers, (including pitchers themselves, catchers, coaches and parents) to understand what correct spin looks like for the pitch that is being developed.

There are MANY tools you can use to help everyone SEE spin more easily. My personal favorites include spinners, 2-colored & lined balls (the video is showing fastball/peel drop spin) and balance pods. Many of these things can be seen in the video above.

Spin trainers give great feedback to everyone on WHAT spin direction was created at release and can help to create correct muscle memory when used consistently over time!

Spin direction of the 3 main movement pitches:

• Drop Ball: Forward/Down (towards 6 o'clock)
• Rise Ball: Backwards/Up (towards 12 o'clock)
• Curve Ball: Sideways (towards 9 o'clock for RHPs and 3 o'clock for LHPs)

When I train pitchers, we work on the tedious details around getting correct spin and it's HARD!

If your pitcher isn't willing to put in the time to get it right, her spin will likely hold her back from having exceptional movement.

2. Posture/Weight Shift

After your pitcher can spin the ball correctly, the next component to work to master is the correct posture or weight shift at stride foot set.

There are some very SUBTLE differences that will help to set up a specific release angle for each pitch.

These positions should NOT be dramatically different than the fastball. Small adjustments go a long way in helping to create a consistent release angle!

Posture/Weight Shift of the 3 main movement pitches:

• Drop Ball: with front leg
• Rise Ball: with back leg
• Curve Ball: slightly across where you want the ball to start moving

3. Release Point/Angle

After your pitcher understands spin AND how to set the correct posture for the pitch to work, the next thing to work on to create exceptional movement is the release angle and release point that is needed.

Pitchers that don't understand this concept will often throw pitches that spin correctly but stay flat and often get hit hard!

When throwing a rise ball, pitchers want to release the ball from low to high so the ball spins out on a slightly UPWARD angle. This will allow the ball to move through the zone from low (knees or legs) to high.

The drop ball should be released from high to low so that the ball spins out on a slightly DOWNWARD angle. This will allow the ball to move through the zone from high (starting somewhere around the knees) to low.

The curve ball should be released towards your pitcher's glove side. Right-handed pitchers should spin the ball from right to left and left-handed pitchers from left to right. This will allow the ball to move ACROSS the zone horizontally.

It's also very important that your pitcher follows the ball out THROUGH her release point with her hand/arm. If the ball is not released at an angle to allow the spin to take it in the direction it's meant to go, results will be very inconsistent at best.

4. Speed of Spin

The speed that the ball rotates, NOT the speed of the pitch, determines how much the ball moves for the rise and curve.

Once a pitcher has mastered spin direction, she should continue to work on creating faster spin. There are many ways to help her do this.

A couple of my favorite tools for helping to improve spin speed after your pitcher is able to hold correct spin are the 14" ball and Lite Flite softballs.

5. Pitch Location

The final part of creating an EXCEPTIONAL movement pitch is to be able to locate in an area IN or OUT of the zone based on the count or game situation. This step will take LOTS of time to master, much like developing correct spin!

When working with pitchers on the location of a movement pitch, we talk about where we want the pitch to START to get the ball to move inside the zone VS outside the zone.

For example:

If you want your pitcher to throw a curve ball for a CALLED strike, she will want to spin the pitch out towards the MIDDLE of the plate and let the ball MOVE across the plate.

If you want your pitcher to throw a curve ball for a BELIEVABLE ball, she will want to spin the pitch out towards the CORNER of the plate and let the ball MOVE out of the zone.

One last reminder...

Exceptional movement take weeks, months and even years to develop! Help your pitcher understand it's not HOW MANY different types of pitches that she throws that will determine how good she will be.

Having several AVERAGE pitches will never be better than having one or two EXCEPTIONAL pitches!

Set small goals and appreciate the progress your pitcher makes along the way with her pitch development.

Pitching is a JOURNEY, and celebrating the small WINS along the way keeps the grind REWARDING and worthwhile!

If you have any questions about developing great movement pitches, or if there is something you'd like me to cover in more detail in a future post, don't hesitate to reach out to me HERE!

Have a great weekend my friend! I'll be back again next week!

All My BEST,

Myndie