The Importance Of Weight Shift On Pitching Velocity

by Dick Mills on October 16, 2008

One of the most important aspects of pitching mechanics to insure maximum velocity and control is how to shift your weight moving from the back leg to the front leg.  Most pitchers do not understand how to do this.

When I am referring to weight shift I am referring to making sure the pitcher has all his weight loaded over his back leg before he moves his body toward landing.  For example, out of the stretch, the pitcher must shift his head back over his back leg before he starts his move toward the plate. This insures that he moves his entire body the greatest distance which means he will gain maximum momentum and more force on the ball.

The Important Power Position

Once pitchers have shifted their weight over the back leg out of the wind-up or stretch, their back leg will bend and they will start their leg drive. The key is that they must maintain their nose over their bellybutton all the way until landing.

To check this, you must videotape them from the side angle (3rd base for RH pitcher) and stop the video when their front foot plants...not just touchdown but foot plant so you can see that their weight in on their front foot. This is the landing position or what I refer to as the "power position." This will tell me whether they will get the most out of their body.

I call the proper landing position or power position an important "positioning factor."  In other words if the pitcher is not in a good position at landing the he loses power and control and adds stress to his throwing arm.

The other and equally important mechanical factor once the positioning factor is understood is the "speed of movement factor."   This insures that the pitcher is moving his body fast enough to create maximum momentum and force. 

If a pitcher uses one of these mechanical factors well but not the other, then his velocity will suffer and he adds stress to his arm.

Most pitchers do not understand how to shift their weight so that upon landing their feet are spread wide (100% of their height stride length) their trunk is still back so that their nose is positioned over their bellybutton. The throwing arm will be up and cocked at about 90 degrees. The throwing elbow will be at or just below shoulder height. If the elbow is raised above the shoulder or the hand has moved in closer to the head, this is an indication that the pitcher is either moving his body too slow or is breaking his hands too early. When the throwing elbow is raised above the shoulder, this is more stressful on the arm and should be a concern.

Upon landing most youth and high school pitchers will have their head positioned too far forward of the bellybutton which means they will lose the ability of their trunk to rotate and flex forward through a longer range of motion. This will result in their throwing arms not moving at maximum speed. This is referred to as "rushing the motion" which is not an indication of moving too fast but simply getting the trunk positioned too far out in front at landing.

So a pitcher's landing position is a good predictor of whether he understands how to shift his weight while using proper timing. And whether he will gain maximum velocity with less stress to the arm.

Why Getting To Ball Release Quickly Slows Velocity

Many youth and high school pitchers still believe their arms are supplying the power so they believe that getting to ball release quickly is the solution to a faster arm. It is the exact opposite.

Holding on to the ball longer is the solution by focusing on getting the body into the correct position by smoothing out mechanics. Keeping the ball in the hand longer is a key to more velocity. So therefor lagging their throwing shoulder and arm behind is key to velocity.

Smoothness should be their external focus prior to each pitch. They should know how to "map" each pitch in their mind or make a mental movie of what they want to accomplish as their goal.

Make sure they are starting correctly using the "timing trigger" which means they need to start to make their lunge and leg drive just as their leg and hands start down from their highest point.

I see lots of high school pitchers who start too slow and then try to speed it up at the end. That looks choppy and is apparent with the naked eye. Or they do not ever get fully loaded over their back leg before they start. Or if they do they wait too long to begin their first movement away from the rubber. The front leg gets down close to the ground before they start their move. Then they try to compensate and move more quickly at the end. This actually slows them down.

What are their hands doing as their leg is lifting? I like to see the hands move up as the leg is lifting. This helps create better rhythm. Stationary hands at the chest while the leg is lifting can cause timing problems.

If the hands break early you have a timing problem. You want the hands to break after the pitcher's front hip has started to move away from the rubber.

Without videotaping pitchers no instructor is able to see whether the pitcher is using his body correctly enough to produce maximum force. 

So if instructors and parents will simply check their pitcher's landing position they will be able to see whether he fully understands weight shift and good timing or not.

Dick