How Critical is Brush

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Jun 19, 2013
753
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I swear I am about ready to give up trying to teach brush. Is there any way she is going to get this/develop this on her own? She has had the luxury of Ken B. trying to teach her brush. We've done our best to do drills on it quite a bit. But in full motion it completely disappears. In drills when I can get a bit of it her location is generally off (inside to the point of nailing people if it was in games) and her drive is minimal. When we start driving hard, throwing her drop and trying to locate there is no sign of brush. It's so hard at times to decide what you are going to put your foot down on as an absolute. I just need to hear from some parents of successful older pitchers if they had to teach it, if not did they find it on their own . . . Please enlighten me!!

Oh yeah she is 13 1/2 right now. Been pitching since just before she turned 11.
 
Feb 17, 2014
7,152
113
Orlando, FL
Brush is a very common trait that is often the difference between good and exceptional. It is a byproduct of proper IR mechanics. Although not absolutely necessary (blasphemy!) it is extremely typical of elite pitchers. If your IR mechanics are sound you will find it difficult not to brush.

At 13 1/2 your DD has many years of pitching ahead so do not obsess over it. At her age she really does not understand what her body is doing and simple things like brush interference, palm up at 9, humerus behind mid-line, etc. are not easy. Take your time and find the little wins that over time will make her great. Remember it is a marathon not a sprint, so maybe put brush on the shelf for a bit and work another point of emphasis. Has she truly mastered IR and can she flawlessly execute the drills? If not that should be where you spend most of your time and most likely brush will manifest.

I have found that unless there is a major problem it is best not to work on the lower body until you have a mastery of IR. Without a mastery of IR nothing else you work on really matters. Master IR and she will probably demonstrate brush interference.
 
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sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,133
113
Dallas, Texas
I just need to hear from some parents of successful older pitchers if they had to teach it, if not did they find it on their own .

My DD found it on her, as she did so many things. After I read Rick's post, we were out tossing the ball around. I heard the "swoosh" of her shirt when she hit her side, and I asked her what she was doing. She said, "Oh, I picked that up in college. I was always trying to stand up tall when I pitched, and my arm hit my side. The only way I could avoid hitting my side was to stick my butt out. I knew that wasn't good, so I just did it that way. Is that wrong?"
 
Sep 10, 2013
603
0
DD's been converted to IR for 2 years and brush among other things is one thing that she still has to work on.
as RB has mentioned, it's not a sprint. as much as i want DD to have the best mechanics, it's not going to happen right away.

she fixed quite a few things over the 2 years (and picked up a few bad habits).
bending at the waist, glove swim, dragging the side of the pushoff foot, pulling the ball (yikes!). yes, we have a few more things to work on.

glove swim was something we have continuously worked on for many, many months and then just one day, it was fixed.
i attributed that to physical and mental growth and understanding better on what needed to be done and why.

hopefully by year's end, DD'll have it down pat :)
 
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Jun 19, 2013
753
28
This is so helpful and encouraging!! There has been progress this year - firmer front side, standing taller, ball staying more toward 3rd base (not on top like we'd like, but also not leading down the back like it used to), more consistent rise ball. Also much more open to reviewing her own videos and attempting to correct her form.

With ball facing 3rd, and not much bend there really isn't much whip possible. So maybe we'll let brush be a non-teach for right now and just hone in our focus back on that for now.

Thanks for the free advice that is worth so much more than I could ever afford!!
 
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Feb 22, 2013
206
18
One of the first things that I taught my dd to do when she began pitching around 7 or 8 years old was to tell her to release the ball when her forearm hit her inner hip. It was her que for releasing the ball in the same spot every time. Without that que, I had no way of letting her know when to release the ball.

My very first post on DFP was with regards to hitting the hip as a signal for the pitcher to release the ball. I remember my 1st post, because I received a few responses with regards to how unknowlegeable I was to throwing a softball underhand. Since my 1st post, I've noticed that acceptable terms such as brush interference or brush resistance have appeared on DFP.

My dd will enter her sophomore year in college to pitch in the fall of 2015. As I have observed my dd pitch over the last 11 to 12 years, as a bucket dad, coach and parent, I have watched my dd lose her brush from time to time in her pitching career.

My dd once lost her brush to due to a very poor arm circle. Somewhere, she picked up an arm circle away from her body that went hand in hand with a locked elbow throughout the pitch.

My dd lost her brush with a very bad glove hand swim, one time.

My dd also lost her brush once when she began stepping outside of her powerline 20 plus inches to the left and throwing her butt towards 1st base in order to try to get more spin on the ball.

As I have recorded games on my DVR from the Women's College World Series softball championships and watched the various pitchers in slow motion, there were very good(elite) pitchers that I could not pick up their brush while watching their releases over and over again. The elite pitcher that I couldn't observe brush interference with, while watching my DVR games, that comes to mind was Blair Luna. I just couldn't see it and she had tremendous spin on the ball, high strikeout numbers and also struggled with accuracy once and a while. Yet, as I read and observe posts with regards to brush, I have seen video evidence on DFP where Blair Luna does demonstrate brush.

I think the riseball and sluggers posts are excellent responses. I taught brush to my dd for several years before I found DFP. For my dd, I think brush is essential. When my dd brushes, she has a better arm circle, her hips stay in and she doesn't have a glove swim that causes her to lose her balance.
 
Sep 29, 2008
1,401
63
Northeast Ohio
Just a possibility. Observe and check position of ball just over the top down the backside till 9 'clock. Is the ball facing third or more skyward? If it is facing third the hand may be getting ahead of the elbow. If it is more skyward you will likely have more elbow lead and this may lead to the brush and IR. Just check it out. There could be something here.
 
Ok, I have a strong opinion that is getting stronger every day: if as Riseball suggested a pitcher wants to elevate her performance from good to exceptional then Brush Interference is an absolute. There is just to much evidence out in the pitching world to not see it is a trait of 99% of those excelling at the elite levels.
Lots and lots of pitchers do it without ever having thought or known about it. Can BI be taught to a pitcher who does not have it......yes, but it is a labor of love. Both the coach/parent and pitcher better be dedicated to making the change. Those who have suggested to be patient have hit the nail on the head......it could easily take a year or more to make it.
If you ever want to get some great insight on creating new nervous system circuits that are stronger than the circuit that controls the movement you are trying to change, I suggest getting the book or DVD set called "The Talent Code"......it really opens ones eyes about training muscle movements. It will give you a greater appreciation for how difficult it is.....also, it will tell you the best methods for achieving changes.
Back to the subject of BI. My experience has been that the two primary movements (or lack of movement) that cause a lack of BI are: 1) a disconnection of the upper and lower torso....often described as a "butt out posture"; and 2) lack of hip rotation...or a combo of both. If a pitcher is deficient in one or both of these it has probably been happening for a long time.....count how many repetitions she has performed with those deficiencies.....that's about how many corrective repetitions it could take to create a stronger circuit.....kind scary. If you want your pitcher to start getting BI I would suggest you do not wait another second.

Most kids don't feel it when they do or don't get BI so you may need to incorporate an audible signal system such as: I have gone to Walmart and bought baggy nylon wind pants and made the pitchers practice in them. If they get BI they will hear the brush or swoosh as Sluggers pointed out. Now of course they will hate you because the wind pants are not a real fashion statement....but ya gotta do what ya gotta do.
 
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