Dick Mills Professional Video Analysis Service...Since 1995
Who Else Has A Good Arm But Can't Figure Out What's Holding Back Their Velocity... Possibly Losing Anywhere From 5-7 MPH On Their Fastball...Or Has Poor Control And Constant Arm Problems?
From the desk of Dick Mills
Scottsdale, AZ
Dear Friend,
If you feel like you should be pitching with much better velocity and have tried all the popular activities to build strength such as long toss, weighted balls or weight training...or some special drill with little to no success then this could be the most important information about improving velocity that you have ever heard.
If you are like most pitchers, you have tried just about everything...and yet nothing seems to work.
Here is the big problem that most coaches at all levels do not understand...including professional baseball coaches and scouts. Pitching velocity has little to do with arm strength. Yes, read that again since it goes against everything you may have ever heard about improving velocity. However, it has been proven that pitching velocity is a function of building maximum momentum from the body into a long stride so that the body provides the energy that whips the arm through like a high powered sling-shot.
Most Pitchers Would Love "Late Life" On Their Fastball
Most pitchers know there are different types of fastballs. One is a normal fastball that most pitchers throw. the other one is what pro scouts might call a fastball with extra "life" where just as the ball gets close to the plate it seems to jump or have an extra stage to it like a booster rocket. But few know the reason why some pitchers have that "second stage" fastball and some don't.
When pitchers learn how to use their body so that the energy gets to their fingers and the ball as late as possible, then a fastball with "late life" or a seemingly "second stage" is very possible.
But most pitchers never achieve that with their fastball because they are trying to gain velocity with their arm instead of developing the energy from their body so the arm whips through almost effortlessly.
Using The Lower Body Is The Secret To Velocity
The fact is that most pitchers who throw hard know how to use their lower body to deliver their arm at high speed. It's the body that produces velocity...not the arm.
It comes down to this. If a pitcher does not know how to get his body into a good position at landing where all the muscles of his body are put on stretch very quickly...then he is not going to reach his full velocity potential. A pitcher's body must act like a huge rubber band to store lots of energy to whip the arm through. Arm strength has little to do with it.
Why Building Your Body Or Your Legs Will Not Improve Velocity
Many conditioning coaches would like you to believe that the secret to velocity is gaining more strength...especially in the legs. They are wrong. If they were right then how do small skinny pitchers throw over-powering fastballs? Take Tim Lincecum the Giants rookie pitcher who routinely pitches between 93-98 mph and has touched 100 mph...and yet he is only 5'10" 170 lbs. He is small and skinny. If big legs were the secret then how does Tim Lincecum throw as hard as any starting pitcher in the big leagues...much harder than Roger Clemens who is 6'5" and 240 lbs. He does it because he knows how to build momentum and use every muscle in his body...not just his legs.
So wasting time looking for velocity in the weight room is valuable time you will never get back. There is a place for weight training but today it is totally overemphasized. Explosive or full body explosive training is far more valuable...since that is what pitching is all about. If you train slow in the weight room you will be slow on the mound.
A Professional Video Analysis Can Instantly Find The Problem
If pitchers don't know what is holding them back then how can they expect to improve?
So the first step to improving velocity is to find which mechanical faults are killing velocity and holding the pitcher back. A professional video analysis of a pitcher's mechanics should be the first step. Without video taping there is no coach who can just eyeball a pitcher's mechanics to see what is right or what is wrong...no matter how much coaching experience he has. After all pitching contains the fastest human motion in sports.
But Everyone Says You Have Good Mechanics
Maybe you have even heard from coaches or scouts that you have good mechanics. But what does this mean? Many feel that if you look good then you have a good delivery. Nothing could be further from the truth.
In the last twelve years I have done hundreds of video analysis of pitchers at all levels. Rarely do I find a pitcher with perfect mechanics. But what are good mechanics? Good mechanics are getting maximum energy from the body with good timing of all the parts so that maximum force is applied to the ball... but with a smooth yet explosive delivery. Most pitchers do not accomplish that.
CAUTION: What About Pitchers With Sore Arms?
When a pitcher has a sore arm it is the body's way of telling them that something is wrong. It could be a mechanical problem or a practice routine or conditioning problem. However, not finding out what is the cause can end up with surgery or could end a pitching career.
In the case of sore arms or coming back from injuries, I am very aware and sensitive to finding the cause. Most of the time it is a mechanical problem that when fixed reduces the stress to the arm. If it not mechanical I can usually find the cause of the prolbem by going over the questionnaire that the pitcher fills out and sends in with his video or I will probe to find the cause during our phone consult.
These Velocity Killers Are Being Taught By Coaches And Instructors
Pitchers are being told to slow down their deliveries or to shorten their stride. Either of those two recommendations will kill velocity potential.
Many pitchers simply do not get full use out of their lower body so they end up with a short-stride and become mainly upper body throwers...which is very stressful on the arm and could very well be one of the causes of so many arm injuries today. Too many pitchers have slow, robotic and very mechanical deliveries. This prevents them from building sufficient momentum and elastic energy so that the body acts like a slingshot to whip the arm through at higher speed.
Recognizing Mechanical Faults And Fixing Them Is The Key
Through a video analysis of a pitcher's mechanics, from two but preferably three different camera angles, I am easily able to recognize the common faults which reduce velocity and control and add stress to the pitcher's arm. When limitations are removed, such as poor timing or slowness, pitchers many times are able to see significant jumps in velocity in a relatively short time.
Once a pitcher has his mechanics analyzed he will fully understand how velocity is produced and what he should look for when velocity for some reason drops so that he can immediately fix the problem. Sometimes the problem is simply not pitching enough from the mound. Pitchers also learn how to dramatically improve control and how to maintain outstanding control once it is achieved.
Some Of The Benefits Of A Professional Video Analysis
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Identify all major faults to be improved and insure you are not trying to fix something that doesn't need fixing (leave natural movements alone)
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How to maximize speed of movement and power production into a longer stride
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Fully understand the simplicity of the delivery and the key elements to focus on
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Insure you are not micro-managing mechanics or getting paralysis of analysis
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Focus on smoothness which is the result of proper timing of all the parts
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Learn how to do all future analysis on your own
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Make sure you are not wasting time
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Insure that the pitcher gets the most out of his body
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Sharper breaking balls
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Be able to make adjustments during practice and games
Your Insurance Policy Against Reduced Performance
If you are a college or professional pitcher and would like to improve your velocity, a professional video analysis is your insurance policy against reduced performance.
Here's what you get:
You will receive a full written analysis with a freeze-frame photo breakdown of your delivery and a full explanation of what you need to change and how. Once you receive the written analysis we set a convenient time to discuss your delivery by phone so you are clear on how to make the needed changes.
Here's What You Get
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An initial email with a quick breakdown.
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A complete written explanation with checklist of what is right and what are the problems or mechanical faults of the pitcher's delivery that are most important to address right now.
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An analysis showing freeze-frame photos of the pitcher's mechanical faults pointing out the problems. Photos will be marked up to indicate the faults and corrections to be made
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A 20 minute phone consult to clarify any part of the analysis or ask questions regarding how to fix the specific faults...or any other question about how to boost performance such as what to do for conditioning or bullpen practice.
If desired, one-on-one instruction can be arranged after a video analysis. However, a video analysis must be done first since that is required before any instruction can begin.
Don't Wait...
Your Career Could Depend On This
If you are getting instruction and you are not being videotaped regularly you could be wasting your time and money. If your instructor cannot explain to you exactly why you are not throwing harder then how can you expect to improve your velocity?
Not videotaping is a red flag that most instructors just do not understand how velocity is produced or how to recognize which mechanical faults are preventing you from throwing much harder.
Turnaround time for a video analysis is approximately five days. You will receive three forms of communication about the analysis: email, written analysis by mail, and a 20 minute phone consult to clarify the analysis and to answer any questions.
Sincerely,
Dick Mills
P.S. How much more time will you waste on trying to improve velocity...doing what is not going to work? Not understanding which mechanical faults are holding you back is not only costing you velocity and control but could cost you a long and prosperous career...or even an arm injury.
For those high school pitchers are who are still learning and developing we suggest that our instructional DVD's may be a better alternative.
If interested you can download the Player Questionnaire and How To Shoot The Video instructions.
Cost: $397 Recommended for top high school, college and professional pitchers looking to improve velocity and control or who need an assessment because of an arm injury. Ongoing consulting on your delivery is also available.
Special Discount for clients
For those who own Dick's instructional DVD's there is a special discount for a video analysis. For more information just send Dick an email at with subject: Client Video Analysis.
If you have questions just email with specifics about your current situation. Please put Video Analysis Service in your email subject heading. Or you can call 480-391-3355. Only serious inquiries please. All major credit cards are accepted or you can pay by check or money order when you mail in the video on DVD.
How To Shoot The Video PDF file
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One-on-One Pitching Instruction: I also provide a limited amount of one-on-one instruction from October until April. Each lesson is videotaped so that the pitcher has sufficient feedback to fully understand how his mechanics are changing and improving. Without videotaping, the pitcher gains little feedback as to what he is doing or whether he is actually making the needed changes. The camera does not lie. Once a pitcher concludes his lessons he is fully aware how to videotape his own delivery so he is capable of recognizing what needs to be changed.
A video analysis is required before one-on-one instruction can begin.
Lessons available for youth , high school, college and professional pitchers.
Cost: 1 1/2 hour lesson: $200
(In order to provide sufficient learning and feedback we suggest at least two sessions)
For many youth and high school pitchers our instructional DVD's may be a better long term investment.
General Consulting On Conditioning/Throwing/Bullpen Routines: Many pitchers do not understand how they should condition during the off-season or in-season and what type of throwing or pitching routine to follow. Or how many pitches to throw during bullpens, at what intensity level or how often bullpens should be thrown off-season or in-season. This is critical to building proper skills. Throwing at less than game intensity, not throwing enough volume of pitches or not throwing enough bullpens can seriously hinder skill development. Plus if pitchers throw too little they are not training their bodies to be fit to pitch. Thus the arm takes on too much stress...not less.
If you have general questions about pitching improvement such as a proper conditioning program or throwing and bullpen routine we are available by phone to help. Also see our Conditioning The Pitcher For Power DVD's...three hours of explosive exercises with daily workout schedules to get pitchers ready for the season. This is a professional conditioning program geared to high school, college and professional pitchers.
My wife Ginny has been certified by the American Collge Of Sports Medicine as a fitness trainer since 1995. She also has a B.S. degree in food science and nutrition.
Cost: $50 for 20 minutes.
All major credit cards accepted
