javasource
6-4-3 = 2
Posture & the Kinetic Chain: The Outer Core
Part III: The Rotational Dilemma & Hello Elbow Conversion
You’ll find that the aforementioned “Rotational Dilemma” is very prevalent in one style of pitching instruction, Hello Elbow (H/E). I’m not going to get too deep into rotational kinematics and angular momentum (or my distaste of H/E)… but if you understand what H/E pitchers are trying to complete… you’ll really see the importance in switching to I/R mechanics (and the absolute absurdity in arguing against this biomechanically correct style).
For anyone that’s ever tried to convert a pitcher from H/E to I/R - you will, at some point - recognize that keeping an H/E pitcher open is one of the more complicated tasks at hand… and often the most critical. Even if their pelvis tries to stay open (most often unsuccessfully)… you’ll see the rear throwing shoulder ‘peeking’ at the target.
Remember, these kids want to pitch fast strikes (aka… ‘down the middle’)… and when at a younger age… the plethora of poor mechanics and practice habits in other kids – coupled with a few physical advantages – allow them their own version of “success”. You must understand that the obstacles you face in converting them to I/R, are far more ingrained than just poor mechanics. The mental breakthrough of… “I/R is better than H/E”… takes them time. “Just throw strikes” is not only the mantra of the people on the sidelines, it has become their own.
Getting their body behind the pitch and throwing it ‘down the middle’ has worked for them all along… and now you’re insisting on teaching them mechanics that will result in much less control initially. ‘Missing to the right’ might be an exciting milestone for an instructor/parent/coach when teaching I/R… but don’t think for a minute that they are loving it. Understanding this mind-frame in a young pitcher is really important.
Many think that a ‘hello elbow’ pitcher is ‘pushing’ the ball… but what they are really doing is attempting to maintain rotational momentum of the torso at the shoulder joint… and even if they use some level of palm-up/palm down… their rotation of the arm is a long-axis rotation – through a single segment (the shoulder). They have to constantly apply force at the rotational joint (shoulder), in a futile effort to maintain a ‘high’ hand/ball speed. At times, they aren’t consciously attempting a rotational move… they are just constantly powering the pitch with their shoulder…. hence the rotation. At other times, they are quite conscious of it... as this method is what they were taught. The following gif absolutely kills me… and not in a good way:
Why the need for constant rotation? Think of a merry-go-round as the arm circle. Pushing the ball around the circle would be similar to trying to push a merry-go-round with all the people positioned around the outer edge… as opposed to the much easier push… if they were all gathered closer to the axis of rotation… or center. However, they cannot apply force to the ball/hand like the merry-go-round… they can only provide force to it from the axis… as they have no way to ‘push’ the hand down the circle from the outside. In physics, much more energy is required… the closer the force is applied to the axis.
As noted, a wheel requires more force to spin it from a spoke closer to the axis of rotation (axle) – than it does from the outside of the wheel. Proper I/R mechanics allow you to lessen rotational torque applied by the shoulder - because energy is passed into each (lesser-mass) distal segment… and each passage creates higher levels of angular acceleration of the hand/ball. So, as you chain the energy down the arm, less rotational torque is needed at each subsequent joint… as opposed to the constant high level of torque you see in H/E.
As noted, good I/R mechanics take advantage of these physics principles… while H/E mechanics will try and ‘do it the hard way’. Long-axis (single segment) H/E requires that you maintain a torque force at the shoulder throughout the backside of the circle – to try and maintain momentum (this requires much more exertion).
It gets better… if you decide to break the mold of long-arming it… and finish with the H/E elbow snap upwards (not alluding to any other threads on DFP), you’ve gained little, as you're terminating any energy that was in the arm. Depending on the ‘elbow snap’ mechanics – a ridiculous amount of energy can be terminated in the elbow… which can be a dangerous predicament.
But… the irony thickens… if you decide to “snap the wrist” (regardless of your mechanics)… the resultant tension in the wrist kills whatever energy the forearm might have had. For this reason, most H/E deliveries tend to be a locked-out, single-segment pitch… as these ‘bowlers’ discover (through adaptation) that this is the speedier version of H/E.
I hope you all see how far removed H/E mechanics are from the goal – which is high hand/ball speeds at release… the result of properly chaining energy through the arm. So, although it’s human nature to fixate on the ball movement in the circle, I’m certain you’ll find it easier to convert an H/E pitcher to I/R mechanics… if you first work on preventing rotational trunk movement in your drill progressions. In other words: get them to throw while staying open, first… and then show them how to whip properly. Teaching them I/R correctly is absolutely critical… but in converting… should come after you teach them to throw underhand across their body (IMO).
Although this open method may lead to visual impairment (DFP inside joke)… it makes for much smoother sailing and less back-tracking... because… if you stay open, a H/E (palm behind, elbow up) finish is a forced movement, especially across the body. This is another reason why all H/E pitchers have a lot of ‘rotational closing’… it makes what they are trying to a little less forced. This is one of those ‘stand up and try it’ moments.
If you train them first to stay open, semblances of I/R often start to ‘just happen’. This is where you’ll start to see a ‘finish across the belly’ movement. Once you tackle this important milestone, this ingenious description of proper pitching mechanics is much easier to accomplish.
Another note… Many H/E pitchers that are learning I/R mechanics can easily fool the novice eye (and more experienced people) into believing they are whipping effectively – as the motion happens very fast. Embrace technology and review video of your DD/students mechanics along the way. The tell-tale sign - is usually in the rear shoulder needing to see the target.
Lastly, when I use the expression “keep them open”, it is NOT a reference to their shoulder line at release. To me, keeping them open is a reference to a pitchers shoulder line when the upper arm contacts the side. At this point, they must be more ‘open’ than ‘closed’ (less than 45-degrees). Failing to do so will negatively impact their ability to fully decelerate and chain energy from the upper arm segment… and you’ll see the upper arm blast (or roll through) by their side. The degree of elbow flexion between pitchers makes the moment of side contact a large variable, so there is no magic time on the pitching clock. Here's the Jennie we love... and I view her as much more 'open' than 'closed':
I hope I’ve shed some light on… or at least made you think some… about the non-necessity to train transverse plane movement - or trunk rotation - in pitching. As such, I’m not a fan of the toe-to-toe drag… or the knee-to-knee pinch. Problems with the back foot ‘anchoring’ are not resolved by closing… they are resolved by ‘unpinning’ the drive foot… by teaching a momentum based drive and incorporating a negative movement (rearward shift) prior to the forward push. I will go into this in more detail very soon - with a drill I created that is one of the most helpful to students I work with… what I call the “2-Step”.
Although I might not see great value in training rotational trunk movements in pitching… make no mistake… there are huge benefits in proximal stability workouts that combine high-speed/high-resistance (but low repetition) rotational movements. As mentioned a couple of posts ago… we’ll cover that subject later, too.
Let’s wrap up the Outer Core posts with a look ‘under the hood’… which is probably what most of you expected, initially…
Part III: The Rotational Dilemma & Hello Elbow Conversion
You’ll find that the aforementioned “Rotational Dilemma” is very prevalent in one style of pitching instruction, Hello Elbow (H/E). I’m not going to get too deep into rotational kinematics and angular momentum (or my distaste of H/E)… but if you understand what H/E pitchers are trying to complete… you’ll really see the importance in switching to I/R mechanics (and the absolute absurdity in arguing against this biomechanically correct style).
For anyone that’s ever tried to convert a pitcher from H/E to I/R - you will, at some point - recognize that keeping an H/E pitcher open is one of the more complicated tasks at hand… and often the most critical. Even if their pelvis tries to stay open (most often unsuccessfully)… you’ll see the rear throwing shoulder ‘peeking’ at the target.
Remember, these kids want to pitch fast strikes (aka… ‘down the middle’)… and when at a younger age… the plethora of poor mechanics and practice habits in other kids – coupled with a few physical advantages – allow them their own version of “success”. You must understand that the obstacles you face in converting them to I/R, are far more ingrained than just poor mechanics. The mental breakthrough of… “I/R is better than H/E”… takes them time. “Just throw strikes” is not only the mantra of the people on the sidelines, it has become their own.
Getting their body behind the pitch and throwing it ‘down the middle’ has worked for them all along… and now you’re insisting on teaching them mechanics that will result in much less control initially. ‘Missing to the right’ might be an exciting milestone for an instructor/parent/coach when teaching I/R… but don’t think for a minute that they are loving it. Understanding this mind-frame in a young pitcher is really important.
Many think that a ‘hello elbow’ pitcher is ‘pushing’ the ball… but what they are really doing is attempting to maintain rotational momentum of the torso at the shoulder joint… and even if they use some level of palm-up/palm down… their rotation of the arm is a long-axis rotation – through a single segment (the shoulder). They have to constantly apply force at the rotational joint (shoulder), in a futile effort to maintain a ‘high’ hand/ball speed. At times, they aren’t consciously attempting a rotational move… they are just constantly powering the pitch with their shoulder…. hence the rotation. At other times, they are quite conscious of it... as this method is what they were taught. The following gif absolutely kills me… and not in a good way:
Why the need for constant rotation? Think of a merry-go-round as the arm circle. Pushing the ball around the circle would be similar to trying to push a merry-go-round with all the people positioned around the outer edge… as opposed to the much easier push… if they were all gathered closer to the axis of rotation… or center. However, they cannot apply force to the ball/hand like the merry-go-round… they can only provide force to it from the axis… as they have no way to ‘push’ the hand down the circle from the outside. In physics, much more energy is required… the closer the force is applied to the axis.
As noted, a wheel requires more force to spin it from a spoke closer to the axis of rotation (axle) – than it does from the outside of the wheel. Proper I/R mechanics allow you to lessen rotational torque applied by the shoulder - because energy is passed into each (lesser-mass) distal segment… and each passage creates higher levels of angular acceleration of the hand/ball. So, as you chain the energy down the arm, less rotational torque is needed at each subsequent joint… as opposed to the constant high level of torque you see in H/E.
As noted, good I/R mechanics take advantage of these physics principles… while H/E mechanics will try and ‘do it the hard way’. Long-axis (single segment) H/E requires that you maintain a torque force at the shoulder throughout the backside of the circle – to try and maintain momentum (this requires much more exertion).
It gets better… if you decide to break the mold of long-arming it… and finish with the H/E elbow snap upwards (not alluding to any other threads on DFP), you’ve gained little, as you're terminating any energy that was in the arm. Depending on the ‘elbow snap’ mechanics – a ridiculous amount of energy can be terminated in the elbow… which can be a dangerous predicament.
But… the irony thickens… if you decide to “snap the wrist” (regardless of your mechanics)… the resultant tension in the wrist kills whatever energy the forearm might have had. For this reason, most H/E deliveries tend to be a locked-out, single-segment pitch… as these ‘bowlers’ discover (through adaptation) that this is the speedier version of H/E.
I hope you all see how far removed H/E mechanics are from the goal – which is high hand/ball speeds at release… the result of properly chaining energy through the arm. So, although it’s human nature to fixate on the ball movement in the circle, I’m certain you’ll find it easier to convert an H/E pitcher to I/R mechanics… if you first work on preventing rotational trunk movement in your drill progressions. In other words: get them to throw while staying open, first… and then show them how to whip properly. Teaching them I/R correctly is absolutely critical… but in converting… should come after you teach them to throw underhand across their body (IMO).
Although this open method may lead to visual impairment (DFP inside joke)… it makes for much smoother sailing and less back-tracking... because… if you stay open, a H/E (palm behind, elbow up) finish is a forced movement, especially across the body. This is another reason why all H/E pitchers have a lot of ‘rotational closing’… it makes what they are trying to a little less forced. This is one of those ‘stand up and try it’ moments.
If you train them first to stay open, semblances of I/R often start to ‘just happen’. This is where you’ll start to see a ‘finish across the belly’ movement. Once you tackle this important milestone, this ingenious description of proper pitching mechanics is much easier to accomplish.
Another note… Many H/E pitchers that are learning I/R mechanics can easily fool the novice eye (and more experienced people) into believing they are whipping effectively – as the motion happens very fast. Embrace technology and review video of your DD/students mechanics along the way. The tell-tale sign - is usually in the rear shoulder needing to see the target.
Lastly, when I use the expression “keep them open”, it is NOT a reference to their shoulder line at release. To me, keeping them open is a reference to a pitchers shoulder line when the upper arm contacts the side. At this point, they must be more ‘open’ than ‘closed’ (less than 45-degrees). Failing to do so will negatively impact their ability to fully decelerate and chain energy from the upper arm segment… and you’ll see the upper arm blast (or roll through) by their side. The degree of elbow flexion between pitchers makes the moment of side contact a large variable, so there is no magic time on the pitching clock. Here's the Jennie we love... and I view her as much more 'open' than 'closed':
I hope I’ve shed some light on… or at least made you think some… about the non-necessity to train transverse plane movement - or trunk rotation - in pitching. As such, I’m not a fan of the toe-to-toe drag… or the knee-to-knee pinch. Problems with the back foot ‘anchoring’ are not resolved by closing… they are resolved by ‘unpinning’ the drive foot… by teaching a momentum based drive and incorporating a negative movement (rearward shift) prior to the forward push. I will go into this in more detail very soon - with a drill I created that is one of the most helpful to students I work with… what I call the “2-Step”.
Although I might not see great value in training rotational trunk movements in pitching… make no mistake… there are huge benefits in proximal stability workouts that combine high-speed/high-resistance (but low repetition) rotational movements. As mentioned a couple of posts ago… we’ll cover that subject later, too.
Let’s wrap up the Outer Core posts with a look ‘under the hood’… which is probably what most of you expected, initially…
Last edited by a moderator: