Front Side Resistance

[Me_and_my_big_mouth]

So my 2nd year 14u DD pitches, plays 3 (and 2 for HS), and bats 4 or 5 for travel and 7 for HS. She's been popping up or hitting dinks lately for school, but the pitching is different so we're trying to just be chill about it and let her figure it out.

PC always telling her: need to firm up front side. She works on it with him, but doesn't appear to really grasp what he's saying entirely.

Infield coach works with her - she's weak with her throws sometimes. He's been working hard with her on throwing against her front side.

Today during hitting lessons, I heard coach say, "You need to STOP against a firm front side."

Hmmmm, seeing a pattern, perhaps??

She's strong, athletic, and very coachable - except, apparently, the concept of FFS. This ongoing issue is making all of us (including her) quite insane, because she'll do well in practice when she's thinking about it, then it goes away in a game environment.

She's done drills. So many drills. Kick the man, crash the car, hit the wall, hold your chin just so...it just isn't sinking in. She moves thru her body and loses that resistance that she's after.

Help? Ideas? Or just keep working at it and it will eventually get better?

 

[sluggers]

Some of the terms we use are pretty nonsensical to a young person.

For me, it is easier to think about "front side resistance" in terms of footwork. Look at Whitney Canion's feet in this video. (Whitney Canion was the best pitcher in the NCAA in 2011.) Notice that her left foot stays behind her right foot (she is a lefty).

Work on her pitching without closing, like Whitney. Have her maintain her position with her right foot behind her left foot (assuming she is a righty) after she throws. Don't let her swing her right foot around.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-czxt7uUvXw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[grcsftbll]

This week our PC did a drill with mine that I thought was pretty cool. She had a ramp of some sort, she said she'd seen hitting coaches using it and realized she could adapt it for pitching. My DD stood on the ramp and pitched, feet stationary, just the arm circle. High side of the ramp under the front foot. The purpose is reinforcing weight over the back leg (one of my DD's recurring issues is the forward lean) & front side resistance. I need to find out what kind of ramp it was because it wasn't flat like a skating ramp.

 

[4 girl's dad]

I saw a piece during a televised game this weekend where amanda S was pitching from a mobile baseball pitching mound. She was using it to get the feel for front side resistance and to not fall off the mound. Thought it was a great drill and could see using it for hitting as well.

 

[1bucketmom]

I saw a piece during a televised game this weekend where amanda S was pitching from a mobile baseball pitching mound. She was using it to get the feel for front side resistance and to not fall off the mound. Thought it was a great drill and could see using it for hitting as well.

Saw that as well.... LSU V Kentucky game 3. Looks interesting for sure. Love to get some expert input on the drill.

 

[Me_and_my_big_mouth]

Saw that as well.... LSU V Kentucky game 3. Looks interesting for sure. Love to get some expert input on the drill.

Me, too. It also sounds entertaining for me, which is a bonus.

 

[GunnerShotgun]

How do you field from that position or is it a non issue?

 

[STRIKE3]

So my 2nd year 14u DD pitches, plays 3 (and 2 for HS), and bats 4 or 5 for travel and 7 for HS. She's been popping up or hitting dinks lately for school, but the pitching is different so we're trying to just be chill about it and let her figure it out.

PC always telling her: need to firm up front side. She works on it with him, but doesn't appear to really grasp what he's saying entirely.

Infield coach works with her - she's weak with her throws sometimes. He's been working hard with her on throwing against her front side.

Today during hitting lessons, I heard coach say, "You need to STOP against a firm front side."

Hmmmm, seeing a pattern, perhaps??

She's strong, athletic, and very coachable - except, apparently, the concept of FFS. This ongoing issue is making all of us (including her) quite insane, because she'll do well in practice when she's thinking about it, then it goes away in a game environment.

She's done drills. So many drills. Kick the man, crash the car, hit the wall, hold your chin just so...it just isn't sinking in. She moves thru her body and loses that resistance that she's after.

Help? Ideas? Or just keep working at it and it will eventually get better?

I know this sounds very simplistic but does she land on the ball of her foot, mid foot, or heel? Java speaks at great length about this in Drive Mechanics and the preferred/recommended foot strike.

The reason I bring this up is that my DD was landing mid-foot for several years which is preferred for advanced pitchers (again see Drive Mechanics). I took a step backward about 6 months ago and moved her back to landing on the ball of her foot. BOOM, front side resistance immediately increased and so did her velocity. Her eyes lit up and so did mine. The ball of the foot somewhat forces you to "push back" on the landing. The best thing about this is it takes about 2 pitches to figure it out.

It may or may not help depending on what you are doing now but it was one simple overlooked area for my DD that truly made a huge difference almost immediately.

Good luck!