Weighted Balls?

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May 12, 2008
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You can get more details from Jaeger a lot of which you can find on youtube but briefly you warm up to throw rather than throwing to warm up. Then start easy and close. Slowly stretch out the distance as you throw. Listen to your arm. It should feel good. When you have reached the max distance you can throw with an arc, begin to shorten up the distance attempting to keep the same feel, speed and mechanics you used to throw your max distance as you get closer and closer to your partner.

This protocol can be used for either over hand throwing or windmill.
 

Ken Krause

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May 7, 2008
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Mundelein, IL
I like them and have used them, especially with pitchers who don't go quickly naturally. Often they just don't know the difference, so putting them in that type of drill helps them understand better what arm speed is all about.
 

Ken Krause

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May 7, 2008
3,911
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Mundelein, IL
Net speed drills

Please describe these net speed drills.

Not sure if you were asking me or generally, but here's what I do.

Set up the pitcher in a side position, maybe three or four feet from a net. Have her start with one ball in her hand, while the coach has another bucket in what would be the soft toss position for hitting. Say "go" and the pitcher makes an arm circle and throws the ball into the net. As soon as she releases, toss another ball to her. She resets and throws quickly. Repeat until the drill is finished.

You can have her do 10 balls, or as many as she can against time.

It's not something I do a lot -- I much prefer working the full motion since timing, leg drive, etc. are also issues. Also, it's easy to use poor mechanics in rushed situation so you have to watch out for that. But for a pitcher who just can't get the Ricky Bobby concept of going fast, it can be effective.
 
May 12, 2008
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Sounds horrific to me, to be honest, for all the reasons you mention. Long toss or pitching into net with a radar for immediate objective feedback makes sense but that drill makes zero sense to me from a motor learning perpective.
 

Ken Krause

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May 7, 2008
3,911
113
Mundelein, IL
Funny, it makes sense to Nancy Evans, which is where I learned it (off of one of her DVDs).

Any drill can be good or bad depending on whose hands it's in. Long toss can cause problems (and injuries as well) if it's not done properly. I've found the quick toss drill effective to address a specific issue with specific players. It's not for everyone. I also don't use it on pitchers whose mechanics are not already solid.

Long toss is my favorite drill for building strength and speed. But it doesn't address the issue of the pitcher not understanding what it really means to go fast.
 
May 12, 2008
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Not speaking to Evans but baseball and softball professionals with huge resumes hold many directly conflicting opinions so we can't take one person's belief at face value. If they all agreed, that would be a different thing.
 
May 7, 2008
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We use the weighted balls (over and under) the way Sluggers mentioned. Basically the SLINGSHOT motion into a net with radar feedback. She warms up COMPLETELY! Then we get in the open position and she throws the heavy ball using the slingshot motion 10 reps. Then we move to the light ball for 10 reps. Then to the regulation ball which she throws as many times as she can UNTIL her velocity falls below her most recent baseline speed.

Keith
 

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