Brush Inteference

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sluggers

Super Moderator
Staff member
May 26, 2008
7,132
113
Dallas, Texas
I'm seeing two different kinds of BI:

1) We have BI where there is only a brush against the hip.
2) Then, we have another kind where the upper arm seems to be in contact with the torso.

Which is correct?
 
I'm seeing two different kinds of BI:

1) We have BI where there is only a brush against the hip.
2) Then, we have another kind where the upper arm seems to be in contact with the torso.

Which is correct?


Here is a video clip of a couple pretty good pitchers.....note the BI with both the upper and lower arm. IMO this is what BI is all about. Also note the Internal Rotation these ladies display.
 
Apr 5, 2013
2,130
83
Back on the dirt...
What is the best approach to teaching her this type of mechanic? I see it in the best pitchers but her current PC is a "get the hips out of the way" teacher. She wants to to pitch but it's a battle between what she has heard in the past and what I'm wanting to show her.


Any tips on teaching 9,10,11 year olds? My dd will be 10 in December.

Great thread! Thanks in advance.
 
Sep 19, 2013
420
0
Texas
Here is a video clip of a couple pretty good pitchers.....note the BI with both the upper and lower arm. IMO this is what BI is all about. Also note the Internal Rotation these ladies display.


Rick,
I agree with Slugger. There seems to b two different type BI technics. My dd has a BI more like the 2nd pitcher. Her elbow seems to roll around the hip. Lately she has been hitting her forearm to hard on her leg. Is it possible to come in to inside on the back side of the hip to start the BI? Is that possible? Or could the problem b that the arm is not fully extend all the way after the elbow has started the brush? It seems that her forearm is hitting horizontal on her leg? I am not sure what to fix. I hate to mess with her BI. She has not b able to pitch for 2 week b/c of the injury. Hopefully, that makes sense. Any ideas would b appreciated. Thanks.
 
There is such an inter relationship between Brush Interference and Internal Rotation that it is imperative that there be IR or there can easily be a collision rather than a Brushing roll through of the arm. I would suggest reading the sticky "IR in the classroom" by Board Member....especially the first few posts in the thread.
 
Aug 12, 2014
644
43
Brush interference is contact of the throwing arm with the hip prior to release.
.....
3) IF A PITCHER SLOWS DOWN THE ARM, THEN DOESN'T THAT SLOW DOWN HER PITCH?

No, it does not. Pitching can be though of in many ways, but usually the best way to think of pitching is momentum transfer.

If the upper arm is slowed down, the momentum from the upper arm will be transferred to the forearm, resulting in increased speed of the ball at release.

This is what doesn't make sense to me. The forearm is what hits the hip and slows down, not the upper arm, so I don't see how the momentum transfers from the upper arm to the forearm.
 
Feb 3, 2010
5,752
113
Pac NW
This is what doesn't make sense to me. The forearm is what hits the hip and slows down, not the upper arm, so I don't see how the momentum transfers from the upper arm to the forearm.

Think along the lines of a bullwhip. Energy is transferred down the length of the whip in a wave. As the energy moves down the length, the receiving section speeds up and the giving section slows, or stops:

10mmmu0.jpg
 
Feb 7, 2013
3,188
48
This is what doesn't make sense to me. The forearm is what hits the hip and slows down, not the upper arm, so I don't see how the momentum transfers from the upper arm to the forearm.

First off, it's a light brush (not a hit), the internal rotation of the arm allows it to roll around the brush, the upper arm acts as the fulcrum (brushing the rib cage) and the lower arm is brushing at the hip/outside thigh and rolling into release.

IMO, the secondary benefits of brush interference a) consistent cue on where to release the pitch and b) it also helps keep the arm circle vertical (not tilted and away from the body) which helps with accuracy.
 
Aug 12, 2014
644
43
Think along the lines of a bullwhip. Energy is transferred down the length of the whip in a wave. As the energy moves down the length, the receiving section speeds up and the giving section slows, or stops:

First off, it's a light brush (not a hit), the internal rotation of the arm allows it to roll around the brush, the upper arm acts as the fulcrum (brushing the rib cage) and the lower arm is brushing at the hip/outside thigh and rolling into release.

IMO, the secondary benefits of brush interference a) consistent cue on where to release the pitch and b) it also helps keep the arm circle vertical (not tilted and away from the body) which helps with accuracy.

I'm not disagreeing about BI being a good thing, I don't know enough about pitching mechanics to make an argument either way. I'm just trying to understand what everyone is saying. I don't see how having the forearm brush the hip makes it speed up. It seems to me that the friction would slow it down.
 
Jun 17, 2009
15,105
0
Portland, OR
First off, it's a light brush (not a hit), the internal rotation of the arm allows it to roll around the brush, the upper arm acts as the fulcrum (brushing the rib cage) and the lower arm is brushing at the hip/outside thigh and rolling into release.

IMO, the secondary benefits of brush interference a) consistent cue on where to release the pitch and b) it also helps keep the arm circle vertical (not tilted and away from the body) which helps with accuracy.

Many don't consider this here to be a "light brush".

29pzyhx.gif
 

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