softball – Page 9 – Fastpitch Power

Pitching Drills for a Smoother Drive-through

By Carly | June 11, 2012 |

A little while ago I received an email from a Fastpitch Power reader asking for specific windmill pitching drills to address the issues of turning the load foot and dragging it during the drive-through. The reader was right; though we’ve discussed these issues at length, we’ve been a little light on info regarding how to fix them. I see more pitchers every day having problems dragging their feet, and since it’s so prevalent, I want to share my response with all of you.

4 Exercises for Healthy Shoulders

By Joe Bonyai | June 6, 2012

As the high school season comes to an end, summer travel teams are ramping up. In order to keep your throwing shoulder healthy thoughout the season, you must be PROACTIVE, continuing to keep your shoulder loose and strong before and after you pitch. In my last post, I demonstrated self-massage exercises that you can do if you have two tennis balls and a softball. In this week’s video, I give you my 4 favorite shoulder strengthening exercises that combat the fatigue you accumulate over your season.

Guest Post: The One Trick That Can Make You a Better Pitcher RIGHT NOW!

By Jill | June 4, 2012

Today we are very fortunate to have the first of several guest posts from someone with a tremendous amount of firsthand experience in windmill pitching and the game of softball in general. Jillian Schonberg went to Villanova University as the number one NCAA east coast pitching recruit in 2007, and now she’s a physical therapy graduate student at Harcum College. You’ll hear us talk a lot at Fastpitch Power about how we don’t like to teach “tricks,” but rather we insist on proper, healthy mechanics and hard work, even if it takes longer to get where you want to be. Nonetheless, there IS one thing you can have that can make just about any pitcher noticeably better without changing anything else: a fabulous catcher. A good catcher is invaluable to a pitcher, and a good pitcher-catcher relationship is integral to the success of a team. Jillian is going to share her wisdom on the subject.

Video: G-flop Drill for Windmill Pitching Acceleration

By Phil | June 1, 2012

Acceleration in the windmill pitching motion is critical to the success of the pitch. It’s logical: if you’re not accelerating your arm at delivery, you will not release the ball with maximum speed. Despite this, so many pitchers get into the habit of slowing down or even stopping their hands at the delivery of the pitch, resulting in compromised velocity and accuracy.

Why Young Softball Players Should Throw a Baseball

By Carly | May 28, 2012 |

I’ve been involved in fastpitch softball, either in a playing or coaching capacity, since I was eight years old. Thus, over the course of my life, I have seen and interacted with a pretty large number of softball players at all levels. It won’t come as any surprise when I say I’ve seen some pretty terrible throwing mechanics; you’ve probably all experienced the same thing. I have, however, noticed a curiosity: in a number of cases I’ve encountered, the most talented and athletic kid on a team has struggled more with her throwing than most of her teammates, displaying inconsistent accuracy, experiencing arm pain, or both. There are a few reasons why this might be the case. Personally, I believe coaches across softball, especially at the beginning levels, should place a much greater emphasis on teaching throwing and catching mechanics than they seem to do. Exposing very young players, even exceptionally talented ones, to competitive play without this foundation is doing a disservice to them and their futures as softball players. In addition to this, however, there is a factor that I believe comes into play in many cases. The average young girl’s hand is small, and a softball is big.

Where have all the fastballs gone?

By Phil | May 25, 2012

I try, as often as possible, to attend softball tournaments where our students are performing in game situations. In doing so, I’ve noticed a disturbing trend, prevalent at the NCAA level, that is now filtering down to younger and younger pitchers: The reluctance to throw fastballs. No doubt learning to throw movement and off-speed pitches is a critical component of any pitcher’s development. But let’s take a closer look at what I believe is a serious case of “throwing the baby out with the bath water.”

Video: Windmill Pitch Drive-through Mechanics

By Phil | May 18, 2012

The drive-through is an extremely important component of windmill pitching mechanics. It’s one of your biggest sources of power as a pitcher, and it can also be your biggest reason for losing power if you’re not doing it optimally. Throughout our years of teaching and watching softball tournaments of all levels in person and on television, we’ve seen a lot of leg work that, well, needs work. There really is one way to optimize your drive-through and get the most out of your legs when you pitch for maximum power and injury prevention. In this video, I’ll demonstrate those mechanics.

Awesome At-Home Softball Specific Total Body Workout

By Joe Bonyai | May 16, 2012 |

In this post, I demonstrate a two-circuit, total body workout using only Valslides, a Cook Band, and your own bodyweight. This routine can be done at home, in a hotel when traveling, or you can take theses portable pieces of equipment to your gym. Throughout the videos, I explain the softball-specific and female-specific physical benefits of each exercise.

Is Your Pre-motion Hurting Your Pitch? The Finale!

By Carly | May 14, 2012 |

Today I’m bringing you the fourth and final part of my windmill pitching pre-motion series. So far in parts 1-3, we’ve talked about improper loading, load foot rotation, and detrimental backswings. Now your load is terrific, your load foot is solid, and your backswing is under control or nonexistent. Is there anything else you can do in your pre-motion that may be detrimental to your pitch? Unfortunately, yes. The Fastpitch Power instructors advocate generally minimalistic pre-motions, and we believe that a lot of excess “noise” in your pre-motion can hurt you immediately and in the long run. Read on to find out why.

Video: Importance of the Glove Hand in Windmill Pitching

By Phil | May 11, 2012

Do you think about your glove hand when you’re pitching? Do you even know what it’s doing? The glove hand is an EXTREMELY important part of the windmill pitch. It has the power to steer your body in the direction of your target, and the power to pull your shoulders way out of alignment if it’s not doing what it’s supposed to do. Maintaining good glove work takes a lot of core strength. In this video blog, I’m going to demonstrate the power of the glove and some common mistakes that pitchers make with their gloves.

Posts Tagged ‘softball’