Forearm angle at release

What would be the correct angle of the forearm on a typical IR "Fastball". I keep telling my DD she needs to be closer to her thigh and she should feel a brush.

Arm Angle

What is her overall posture like? I believe I see a lean, or torso tip to the left side. I'd start with trying to improve her posture. If it's not too hot where you are, ask her to put some longer shorts on, or some sweats so she can feel and hear the blade of her hand brush the pant leg. I really wouldn't worry much about arm angle as much as posture and keeping the lower arm loose. Let the ball whip out of the hand using brush as the trigger. Use the progressions and key points emphasized in these:

https://www.discussfastpitch.com/softball-pitching/10321-i-r-classroom.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijHqW1ZpcV8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5T4Jd7GKg5Q

I think a slow-mo clip of her release would be much better in determining things.

I was curious too if the pic was from a drill or from full motion pitch? I think they can vary a lot. Full motion puts all your hard work to the test haha

It was from a drill. I looked at the video again and it looks like she is pushing the ball to make it spin the right way. Ive got video of full pitches in games and I see the same thing except I cant get behind her to do video during a game. She is coming back from a PARS injury and some of the old issues are coming back. The fact she is in the circle is a blessing in itself, just a little frustrating when I see the mechanical flaws. Looks like we need to revisit the Boardmember drills to get the whip back.

I started looking at the video for the clip I pulled from and I noticed the elbow is not pointing down, but going toward 3rd base (LH). So we are working on the 9 o'clock with emphasis on leading with elbow and getting the ball to lag.

Ken Im trying to find some loud pants, but they keep sending me to golf section.

Jeff
I don't think she is to far off. She is definitely getting the brush trigger......my personal preference would be that her forearm stabilize against her thigh a little lower on the forearm...maybe 3 inches above the wrist. Here are some pics of brush trigger/stabilization that may help. Not sure what pitch your DD was throwing in the pic, but if it was a dropball it appears that her index finger may be moving toward the inside of the ball and be compromising a 12/6 spin axis. Does she get some gyro spin on her drop?

Rick Pauly said:

Jeff
I don't think she is to far off. She is definitely getting the brush trigger......my personal preference would be that her forearm stabilize against her thigh a little lower on the forearm...maybe 3 inches above the wrist. Here are some pics of brush trigger/stabilization that may help. Not sure what pitch your DD was throwing in the pic, but if it was a dropball it appears that her index finger may be moving toward the inside of the ball and be compromising a 12/6 spin axis. Does she get some gyro spin on her drop?

View attachment 12072

Click to expand...

Rick,

Gyro ball?? Can you clarify what you mean?? I do see that about half the time the 11-5 spin (LH IR fastball) comes out wobbly, for lack of a better term.

So maybe instead of bringing the finger in the same direction of the stripe its cutting under the ball??

Ok now back to that arm angle. It seems to me that my DD is trying to get to the endpoint, but from nine o'clock. We are always working on brush and trying to get further down the thigh. So when she starts from 9 she puts the arm at that angle instead of pulling the arm down and letting it get to that angle. The arm never really straightens out at 6. Now when I say straight I mean with centrifugal force the arm should get straighter at the bottom, but if you are doing BI correctly the arm should wrapping around the hip.

I don't think straightening should be an objective. Although there may be a slight straightening, keeping the lower arm loose should be the primary focus. For the most part, the elbow maintains the angle and like you noted, allows the forearm to wrap/roll around the hip joint. If the arm was too straight, it would bonk the body. I believe IR is dependent on some degree of flexion in the elbow. @Rick Pauly