How Pitchers Can Easily Improve Velocity And Control

by Dick Mills on March 31, 2008

How can parents and coaches help pitchers improve their pitching velocity along with their control?

If pitchers want to improve pitching velocity they must improve speed of movement and momentum. I have written before that pitching velocity is about how a pitcher moves from the back leg to the front leg into a long stride...a stride that should eventually be 100% of his height rather than 80-90% as is taught by many coaches and instructors. The back leg and hip are what move the body away from the rubber into a long stride.  And the key to more velocity is explosive mechanics.

Think of the back leg in pitching and the pitching rubber like a sprinter would think about using his back leg against the starting blocks to get a quick start.

However, what is most important for getting the back leg to do its job is to understand that in order to move the body away from the rubber so that the front hip moves out ahead of the front shoulder...is to make sure that there is sufficient bend in the back leg. But this should happen naturally rather than trying to tell the pitcher exactly how much to bend it.

Hall Of Fame Lefty Sandy Koufax Emphasized Staying Low

Sandy Koufax was a high velocity pitcher with a great curveball. He emphasized why pitchers should strive to stay low...rather than stay tall...as many coaches teach today. Look...if you want to achieve a long stride how can you be tall. You can't. It's actually impossible to stay tall while moving into landing or ball release.

All you have to do is observe what pitchers look like at landing. Check out Nolan Ryan, Josh Beckett, or Tim Lincecum. These pitchers all throw in the mid to upper nineties. What do they all have in common. They have long strides, they move fast, they stay low and they use their back legs to drive their front hip at the target.

So where does better control come in. The closer a pitcher can get his body and the arm to the target...the easier it becomes to control the ball. Plus the less time the hitter has to react to the ball. And the faster you move toward the plate the less chance of mechanical error. Move faster if you want better control. Do not move slower. Just try it.

So if you want more pitching velocity and better control...learn how to to move faster and stay lower and get the body closer to the plate with a longer stride.