throwing/hitting...striking a pose etc...attn Austin/Tewks

[iMlearning]

I wasn't sure where to post this...
I've been studying (like most of you) hitting and more recently, throwing. My DD throws fairly hard, but was having a problem with a funny spin on the ball, side arming, and fielding the ball and taking it directly to the "L" position. Within one week span, her travel coach said while she was playing outfield, she had an "infield throw" and her Varsity coach said when she was playing 3rd, her throw was more of an "outfield" throw. Truth is, it was neither of them
I believe it was mid January we started to do some of Austin's drills that he had posted here. Unfortunately, I didn't have much time to work on it with her before HS ball started.
Tuesday, I was able to get her a lesson with her hitting coach, and he said he would work with her on throwing for half the lesson. I was actually worried, because in his organization, most of the coaches start off with the wrist flick drill etc... I thought it might contradict what I was trying to get rid of. I was actually surprised that after he asked her how she normally warms up, he said he doesn't believe in doing wrist flick drills. In fact, he said if the coach has them do the drill, to lift her hand up higher, and do more of a "basketball" shot just to warm up the wrist and take stress off the elbow. After she was warmed up, he timed her at 53 MPH pretty consistently. He will time her again at a later date to see the improvement.
We talked about what some of the coaches were telling us about spin, side arm etc... Fortunately, he said the drills we were doing must have worked, because she didn't have a single side arm throw and the spin was very good (used a ball with a stripe on it for the practice).
What he did notice immediately, is that she takes the ball up to the "L" position and "strikes a pose" as he put it. She of course doesn't take it to the L position when we do the drills, but when fielding etc...she went back to her old ways. After working on infield technique on fielding the ball and taking the ball glove towards ear (3rd base technique he prefers), she started looking much better. The thing is, she still paused in that position. He said, you need to be more fluid...no pauses. After throwing awhile, she said how much better it felt; like she didn't have to try as hard to make a hard throw.
This made me think about hitting and how we have started to go with "the load is the swing" and making her swing as smooth as possible. It seems some of Tewks drills used for teaching a smooth swing correlates nicely to throwing. When I was watching the Varsity game yesterday, I noticed other girls "striking a pose" when they were throwing- and it wasn't because they were trying to figure where to go with the throw. It wasn't smooth. Have any of you focused on a "smooth throw/ smooth swing?" Maybe I'm late to the party, but this was enlightening to me. Sorry for going on so long, but I've had a lot of coffee

 

[Tewks]

Hey, Austin just told me about this post. The GO! drills can be very good for establishing that sequence, making things smoother. With throwing, the arm action is important. That water bottle drill can be really outstanding because the water allows you to see the motion. When you tie in with the rest of the body, the ball can really jump out of the hand!

Its funny how many conversations I have with parents at our facility who comment on how different the game is to watch when they can look for all the stuff we talk about. I think this is a prime example. This is a huge part of what we are trying to accomplish with the books and our writing. We want kids to be doing what the best players do. We don't want players doing something just because it is what the coach says. (And we want to align with coaches who are active about learning the best ways to teach the best information!)

Anyway, thanks for the post and keep us updated!

 

[GunnerShotgun]

Most of the time when I see players with a "pause" in their throwing motion it's because their feet and hips aren't in the right position to follow through (so they are waiting on everything else to catch up).

 

[iMlearning]

Good comment Gunner!
We've only had a chance to do the "Go" drill a couple times batting but I think this would definitely help. I can't wait till HS is over so I can work with her more.

 

[tsryan71]

I can't help but hear Howard Kobata in the back of my head, "No good, too slow!"

 

[sanchosj]

What is the Go drill and water bottle drill??

 

[Amy in AZ.]

"Have any of you focused on a "smooth throw/ smooth swing?" Maybe I'm late to the party, but this was enlightening to me."

This is what Candrea has been saying for the past several years. I learned it from him.

 

[iMlearning]

"Have any of you focused on a "smooth throw/ smooth swing?" Maybe I'm late to the party, but this was enlightening to me."

This is what Candrea has been saying for the past several years. I learned it from him.

Her hitting coach is a big fan of his... I really just started getting into this seriously around February of last year.