The Best Baseball Pitching Velocity Training Program We Have Ever Seen—Or Can I Sell You Some

The headline reads: The Best Baseball Pitching Velocity Training Program We Have Ever Seen.

The previous statement appears on a website that sells a weighted ball program as a proposed means of instantly boosting baseball pitching velocity on average 7.8 mph. This is the old “snake oil” sales tactics that have been around for a million years or so that says “I have this special thing that nobody else has or has thought about and if you buy it from me then you too can have this special boost.”

The question is: Is there any type of special training techniques that will produce more baseball pitching velocity? And the answer is that there are no “special ones.”

The most important thing a pitcher can do to develop more velocity right now—today is to understand how to apply better pitching mechanics which will allow his body to transfer forces more efficiently. And then to practice developing those better mechanics a lot of the time preferably throwing from a mound…since that is what pitchers must do in games. That is about as “magical” as you can get.

Pitching velocity is a combination of things. First of all, pitching is a full body activity, that requires the summation of all the body’s forces to deliver the pitcher’s arm when throwing a fastball… as quickly as possible with the intent of hitting the target.

Pitching requires good mechanics that help transfer all the forces of the body efficiently with good timing to deliver the baseball. In order to maximize velocity a pitcher must train to have good mechanics throwing from a mound a lot of the time since pitching is a skill activity like golf.

A quality delivery using good mechanics looks nice and easy and smooth…although closer inspection finds that the parts move explosively from the first movement of shifting the lower body away from the back leg. You can see that smoothness in pitchers like Curt Schilling, Mariano Rivera or Roger Clemens to name just a few.

It’s the large muscles of the leg, the hips, the trunk and the shoulder that contribute mostly to the power…not the smaller ones such as the arm itself. The arm is the control device that allows the ball to hit the target.

Pitching is also not an arm strength activity since throwing a light object such as a 5 oz baseball does not require much force. This is easily proven since Little League pitchers can throw the ball the equivilent of 90 mph from 46 feet…using only their natural strength. The only training they have had is just throwing a baseball.

Pitching velocity is much more about speed of movement or how quickly the pitcher can move his body to deliver his arm.

So can there really be a “special” training program that will help pitchers throw harder. There are none that I have seen other than just doing full body training designed to help the body be more explosive. We have had a program like that for over 5 years that is specific for helping pitchers be more explosive…while staying flexible. We do not consider our program to be a magic bullet. It is just purely functional, explosive full body core training designed specifically for baseball pitchers. And it works to do just that.

That is as special as you can get.

If a website or coach or instructor tells you that they have a special velocity building program…whether it’s long toss, weighted balls or going into the weight room or throwing certain weighted implements…tell them you don’t need any snake oil.

Dick Mills

If you have questions about this blog post or on any phase of pitching—mechanics, strength and conditioning, mental training, strategy send those questions to dickmills@gmail.com and I will answer them here.

If you want an explosive body and explosive mechanics you need to get my Free Report at www.pitching.nexcess.net. We won’t waste your time. We show you how to recognize exactly what is holding back most pitchers…find the problem—fix the problem. I show you a comparison between two high school pitchers and a major league pitcher who throws mid to upper nineties. You will see the biggest problem that reduces velocity in the majority of pitchers.

(If you are a high school or college coach, ask for our special Free Coach’s Report.)