Baseball pitching is the action that initiates the game and not all players can do so. In order to be affective you need proper skills with physical and mental strengths to excecute the plan. And for this coaches refer several baseball pitching drills to enhance the accuracy.
Don’t worry, you can do these drills even at home in your backyard. Furthermore, people of any age can do these exercise so whether you are old or young, these pitching exercise will definitely helps you.
So, let’s dig in and find out the ultimate baseball pitching drills.
Best Baseball Pitching Drills:
Only a few people know the story behind such strength and maximum effort a pitcher has to put every time he throws the ball at the speed of 70-120 km/hour. That is why the top-quality pitchers all over the world are in high demand as it is not everyone’s cup of tea.
So, what keeps the players standout among the crowd is not a secret anymore.There are some distinct throwing styles and baseball pitching drills that enable a player to achievefull piching action his standard goal as a pitcher.
If you have a game ahead and you wanna stay fit, these pitching drills are just for you.
The wall drill:
It works very best at the beginning of pitching delivery. By this drill, many things in your future pitching deliveries will happen correctly.
All you get to do is stand up with a wall or a fence or something. Stand up in such a position so you pitch your ball perpendicular to the fence.
The only thing that touches the fence is the side of your buck (not your knee, not your foot, or not your shoulder). You also have to pay attention to your back leg which could bent a little. Don’t get too hunged up on velocity, especially in starting because accuracy is more important for a new pitcher.
Reverse pitching drill:
While performing this pitching drill, it is better to perform it with little bit heavier ball.
To play this drill, sit down on your front knee and your face will be opposite to your pitching direction. While pitching, keep your face straight and move your right hand in the direction of the wall then throw the ball gradually. It is difficult to precisely your arm angle in this drill, but while moving your hand towards the wall, try to tilt your chest to throw better.
Balance Point Drill
As name mentioned, this drill helps you to develop good balance. It also helps you to improve the proper knee lift & direction. This drill also improve your general body control.
So how it works? As a pitcher you have to proceed your delivery through mound or flat ground and stops at the balance point for at least two seconds before continuing.
If you have partner he/she tosses a ball to you from the side or from behind. You can use pitching machine if you don’t have any partner. You have to catch the ball with your throwing hand and then continue to your throwing delivery.
Mirror Drill
Mirror drill helps you to improve your general mechanics as well as self-awareness and self-correcting.
To practice this drill, you need a large mirror or partner. You proceed through any dry ( no throwing) mechanical work to see what your mechanics look like.
You can close your eyes. Now move through your delivery and stop at any time to see if where you thinks you is, is actually where you are when you open your eyes.
Pivot Picks drill:
The next baseball pitching drill is pivot picks.
This drill will work on our pronation. A lot of pitchers get around the ball and they put a lot of stress on the elbow so if you are that guy then this drill as well as figure eight are great drills for you to work on your arm action.
In performing the pivot pick drill, stand perpendicular to the direction of pitching (facing away from the target), and pull up your right arm so the maximum pressure will exerted on your muscle. This trick can help you a lot in pitching powerful drill.
Sit Up Throws Drill:
This pitching drill was great to work on your last lenient motion of the pitching delivery when you get your chest down to complete pitching.
Well, what you can do in this is lay down and keep your knees bent a little bit like you are going to do sit up and make your chest front of your pitching direction, and throw the ball with full force.
Reverse wall drill:
In the first wall drill, we are moving towards the wall. But in reverse wall drill, you work like you are moving away from the wall.
All you can do is get your back shoulder closer to the wall, move your back foot forward, and close off your arms at more than an angle of 45 degrees. But make sure to tilt your body a little bit so your hand does not touch the wall. This drilling technique was just amazing for pitching the ball with more accuracy.
The Rocker drill:
In this drill, you have to align your heel with the heel and widen out your leg.
The first way to do this drill is to rock your body forth and back and turn the backfoot so the laces of your shoe go down. The second way is to pull up your back leg and move your body toward the pitching direction. But to pitch forcefully, close off your arms at an almost 45-degree angle for better pitching.
Figure 8 Drill:
Stand in a position in which your hands are in front of you. Then move your arms in figure 8 shape by assuring your hips are also involved. And when you separate your hands, shape your body in such a way that your right hand is at the back. Then don’t close off your arms more and pitch with aggression. In this drill, you have to focus so that your ball hand will not get straight off while you separate your hands.
Towel Drill
You have to use towel in this drill as name mentioned. This drill helps you to develop snap of wrist, delivery of ball out front of body. It also improves arm angles and arm slot as well as arm-speed.
Procedure? You grabs the end of a small towel, then goes through motion of pitching. The sound of the towel should be a quick “snap” and not a slow “whoosh”.You get used to snapping your wrist and following through.
It also helps with delivery and keeping the ball low as well as it gives you general warm-up.
Conclusion:
Mastering the art of pitching takes dedication and practice.
These baseball pitching drills offer a roadmap to success, whether you’re a seasoned veteran or a rookie stepping onto the diamond for the first time. From honing accuracy with the wall drill to the pivot picks, each exercise targets a crucial aspect of your mechanics.
However, consistency is key.