Roy Burlison(10/18/1945-5/11/2017)

[Crystal Brown]

I have not met the hall of famer Mr. Burlison but had the honor of talking with him via social media. He was always kind and always willing to share his knowledge with others. In his memory, I would like to share a few of his postings.
Suggestions how to play Softball

1. Play with your heart for there is no stronger weapons
2. practice, practice, practice hard then execute
3. Never prepare to loose a game
4. If you loose walk off of the field with your head held high while thinking the next time will be different
5. Play all out until the last out is made
6. Be coachable even if you don't have the best coach for he/she gave up alot to be there for you
7. Success happens when opportunity and preparedness meets
8. Obstacles only happen when you take your eyes off of your goal
9. learn to play mentally as will as physically
10. Never play with fear, always be confident
11. Learn to play with dirt in your face and bandages on your wounds
12. Always support your teammates
13. Always be prepared to take advantage of the other teams mistakes
14. For every situation know what to do when it is your turn
15. Play against better teams and learn how to win
16. think, think hard and (liaho) let it all hang out
17. Don't get your team in trouble by yelling at the umps
18. Never loose your focus
19. Learn something new from each game you play
20. Winning can become habit forming, get it
21. learn all your mechanics well and practice them faster
22. Rules are made be bent , not broken
23. Always show respect first
24. Be the player that everyone wants on their team
25. Keep getting better every game

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[Crystal Brown]

This Ex-pitchers Belief about Teaching & Pitching



* This Ex-pitchers Belief about Teaching & Pitching

*

I believe the best pitchers today understand and can perform all requirements needed to be the most successful.

To be a competitive and successful pitcher requires four major components are required.

Mechanics performed properly at a quick paceTiming of that paceProper muscle applicationsHard Snap

Pitching correctly requires the body to be positioned in a certain way at the various stage of the pitch.* Various dominate muscles are also used differently at different times these different stages.* The timing and applications of muscles are used with the mechanics to create the most pressure on the ball just before the snap is completed.* The pinpoint finger pressure on the ball when it is snapped will determine the movement and sharpness of the pitch.* It will also determine when and where the ball moves just before it reaches the catcher’s mitt.

I believe that not only does the arm performs certain mechanics for each pitch; but also does the body to create the most effective pitch.* Unless one has studied the muscle applications or understands from pitching themselves, I believe that can be the most difficult for a trainer to teach.* The sooner a pitcher can accomplish the turn, closet to the mound, allows them to create the strongest pitch based on their size and experience. The further away from the mound a pitcher is before the turn is accomplished weakens the pitch.

Instructors vary in their beliefs on how to accomplish the best pitch.* Some instructors focus on just mechanics and arm speed while others give more credit to using the legs.*

I believe that many pitchers can achieve the speed of 55 mph with little or no technique.* At 60 mph techniques are required and the path to 65 mph is a much narrower path.* It is my opinion that instructors that can help their pitchers reach this speed with good movement and control understand all of the above.

It is my belief that it is very difficult to accomplish timing of a pitch unless you have it in the very beginning of the pitch.* The pitch should feel smooth throughout the pitch, including the snap.* If you feel a jerk in your motion most likely you will feel it where a mistake has occurred.* The pitch should feel like one big move and not two or more.* The leg drive length should be at a distance that allows you to time to snap the ball with a lot of strength.* If it requires you to rush the snap it will be a weaker snap.* The length which you can drive the arm to the snap will usually determine the speed that a pitcher can achieve.* How you the body mechanics after hitting the ground with the front foot will add to the pressure on the ball for both speed and movement.

Pitcher that only use the arm strength and don’t use the rest of the upper body during the snap will most likely realize less movement then those using the upper body on the same pitches.* Most trainers will probably say the hips impact the pitch as well.*

The mechanics, timing, muscle applications and hard snap will result in speed, movement, and control.* The snap, regardless of the arm speed, must be snapped in the same distance for every pitch.* If the snap distance increases, there will be less movement and it won’t be as sharp.* This is why some pitchers lose good movement.* Big pitchers who just focus on throwing hard are usually good against average teams but less effective against the better teams.* With so many good hitters in the game today it is imperative that pitchers focus on improving every aspect of the pitch.* Speeds, movement, sharpness of the pitch when it breaks and off speed are all factors for success.*

Depending on the level of pitching you want to achieve will determine how you focus and how much you are required to practice properly to achieve your goals.

Roy



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[Crystal Brown]

What, Where, and Why of Pitching




How did I think through my game preparations?* I always arrived at the ball park about one or two hours prior to the game time.* I would spend a considerable amount of time stretching all of my muscles.* My reasoning’s for stretching I discovered; was that it allowed me to get my warm-ups done faster and prevented unnecessary injuries or strained muscles.

Once I felt my muscles were stretched and warm, I would start my warm-up by performing a long toss, slow and extending all areas of the pitch.* I continued this until I felt my timing, creating a smooth, long pitch.* Once I reached about two thirds of my speed I then would focus on my snaps.* When doing this using the long toss I could see if my pitch was breaking properly when it reached the glove or if it was losing its break.

After completing this process I would move up to my pitching distance and focus on increasing my speed.* I would also focus on making sure my pitch was breaking correctly and starting to appear to have a sudden sharp break.* I would then focus on locating the pitch by hitting my locations on various pitches.

The last part of my warm-up was focused on how I would pitch the first two hitters.* If I knew the team well my focus would be on the pitches that I felt would work best against that team.* The pitches I would focus on were based on how sharp I felt prior to starting the game.* I would focus on two or three ways to approach the hitter based on getting the swings at pitches I selected or if I didn’t get the swings and was not ahead in the count.* I would focus on what I thought I would to do if the count was in the hitters favor.

My reasons for focusing on the first two hitters were due to experiencing and watching games being lost in the first inning.* By focusing on the first two hitters helped me relax getting into my rhythm.* During the game I would try to detect if the hitter looked comfortable at the plate or not.* If they hitter tried to work fast I would work slowly.* If he appeared to work slowly I would work faster.* On great hitters I would often use the time allotted between each pitch causing the hitter to hold his stance longer with hopes of finding weakness and maybe causing the hitter to change his style some.*

If my pitches seemed very sharp I would throw closer to the plate challenging the hitter early in the count.* If they were not so sharp I would change my angles of the pitch to the hitter.

If the middle of the lineup were on a hot hitting streak I knew I had my work cut out for me and my best pitch selection was required.* After each pitch I always wanted to understand what situations I was facing to help me select the next pitch.

I would think about the count, how many outs, who was on base and what base. I would look at what type of hitter was at the plate and what did this team like to do in various situations.* I was always aware if the wind was blowing or not and if so, which way it was blowing.* For instance, if the wind was blowing toward home plate and a runner was in scoring position; I many times would use the rise ball in an attempt to get a shallow fly ball.* If the wind was blowing into my face I wouldn’t use the rise ball but considered using the drop ball.* If the wind was blowing from home plate to shortstop, I focused more on the strike out because wind blowing in this direction always helped my movement the most.

If a power hitter was at the plate the balls and strikes count was 0/0 most power hitters feel they have one or two free swings and they will take a big rip at the ball.* When they do this their bat head speed is faster and an inside strike is not your best pitch.* In this situation if I threw inside it was close to the hands or knees.* If the count is in the pitchers favor and the hitter appears more on the defensive and not as aggressive with the swing then an inside pitch on the corner is often a good pitch. Also if the hitter appears to open the hips a little early an inside pitch may be a bad choice.

As long as hitters step a little early on off speed, or a little late on hard, sharp pitches the out is more in your favor.* If they are allowed to use their timing creating better power you may be in trouble.

Often after each pitch, depending on what happened, each situation requires you to constantly think about what pitch, where to throw it, and why you selected that pitch and location.* The more you pitch from experience, the more you realize what works best.

I always felt the most important pitch of a game was the next pitch.* Good decisions usually resulted into success and bad selections didn’t always work out.

History always determined how good a pitcher can become.* So, build a successful history and you will be known for it.

So think, think hard, focusing on your best pitch selection, and building your history.

Roy



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