Pitching Drills

1. Bent-Knee Hamstring Stretch (Quadriceps are a very important part in pitching, almost everything revolves around the legs of the pitcher)

Start with your leg bent. Extend your target leg with quadriceps (front thigh) muscles by pulling rope with both hands. Stabilize thigh with elbows if needed. End position with target leg straight. As flexibility improves, move knee closer to the chest. Return to start position and repeat.



2. The Pause and Balance Drill

This drill is particularly effective for pitchers who "rush" their motion, fall forward too soon, have trouble getting "on top" of the baseball into a high-¾ arm slot, or are imbalanced in the balance position.
A coach or another player is needed for this drill.
To begin, a pitcher will go through his full wind-up without the baseball. When he gets to the balance position, the pitcher will stop, hold, turn his head and wait for the coach to hand him the baseball.
Once the pitcher has received the ball from his coach from the balance position, he will turn his head again and throw to his target emphasizing a good follow-through.


3.The High-Cock Position Drill

To get the lower body ready to begin, the pitcher will spread his feet into a permanent throwing-position, slightly wider than shoulder-width apart with the toes of the lead leg pointing to the target.
The back foot, whose only movement during the drill is to turn over to onto the toes when the baseball is released, stays in contact with the ground at all times.
The elbow of the throwing arm should be level with the shoulders which brings the entire arm into the high-cock position.
From this starting position, simply “pull” the glove arm back into the body while rotating the hips and pivoting on the back foot to release the baseball. Follow the motion all the way through after the ball is thrown to ease the stress on the arm.
A good follow-through consists of a pitcher bending his back and bringing his throwing arm elbow to the opposite knee.

Video

Windup

Phase 1

Windup -From your starting stance, begins when the pitchers steps back with the non-throwing foot, balances on the other foot, and picks the non-throwing leg up. This phase ends when leg is at maximum height, and the hands begin to separate.

Shoulder Girdle- Dominant and non-dominant scapulas are in upward rotation.

Shoulder Joint
Extend shoulder joint ( by eccentrically contracting the latissimus dorsi, teres major, lower pectoralis, and posterior deltoid muscles.)

Elbow Joint
Concentrically contracting the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles.

Hip Joint
Non Throwing leg, your hip is flexed by concentrically contracting your iliacus, psoas major and minor, rectus femoris, sartorius, pectineus, and tensor fasciae latae muscles, causing an anterior pelvic tilt. The opposite of your hip externally rotates by eccentrically contracting your piriformis, gemellus superior and inferior, obturator internus and externus, and quadratus femoris muscles. This causes a left transverse rotation.

Knee Joint
Non throwing knee is flexed to 90˚ by concetrically contracting the biceps femoris, popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus. The opposite knee externally rotates by isometrically contracting your biceps femoris muscle.

Early Cocking

Phase 2.

Early Cocking- Begins after the windup phase as your hands spread apart to form a T shape. At the same time, your front foot starts to go towards the target.

Shoulder Girdle
Both scapulas upward rotate using using your serratus anterior muscle and middle/lower fibers of your trapezius muscle.

Shoulder Joint
Abduction of both shoulder joints by concentrically contracting your supraspinatus, deltoid, and upper pectoralis major muscles.

Elbow Joint
Extension of about 170 ˚ by eccentrically contracting triceps brachii, and anconeus muscles.

Hip Joint
Non Throwing Leg causes the hip to extend and abduct.
It extends concentrically by using your semitendinosus, semimembranosus, biceps femoris, and gluteus maximus muscles.
It abducts by eccentrically contracting your gluteus medius and minimus, along with your tensor fasciae latae muscle.

Knee Joint
NonThrowing Knee starts to extend by concentrically contracting your rectus femoris, vastus intermedius, vastus lateralis, and vastus medalis.
The throwing knee stays externally rotated by isometrically contracting your biceps femoris muscle.

Late Cocking

Phase 3.

Late Cocking-Begins when your front foot makes contact with the ground. As the foot hits the grounds, your body twists to face the direction you are throwing the ball in.

Shoulder Girdle
Scapula of your throwing shoulder upward rotation using tthe trapezius muscle and serratus anterior muscle. The scapula on your glove hand shoulder downward rotates using your rhomboids and pectoralis minor muscles.

Shoulder Joint
Throwing Hand-Slightly starts to diagonally adduct by concentrically contracting your pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and coracobrachialis muscles.
Glove Hand- Adduct shoulder joint by eccentrically contracting your latissimus dorsi, teres major, and lower pectoralis major muscles.

Elbow Joint
Flexion of your glove hand elbow by concentrically contracting the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles.
Your throwing hand forearm is slightly supinated by concentrically contracting the biceps brachii, brachioradialis, and supinator muscles.

Hip Joint
Non Throwing foot causes the hip to externally rotate by eccentrically contracting your piriformis, gemellus superior and inferior, obturator internus and externus, and quadratus femoris muscles.
The opposite side of your hip internally rotates by concentrically contracting your gracilis, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus muscles.

Knee Joint
Non throwing knee slightly flexes by concetrically contracting your biceps femoris, popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus. The throwing internally rotates by isometrically contracting your popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus muscles.

Acceleration

Phase 4

Acceleration-This is the phase in which you bring your arm forward and release the ball at the target.

Shoulder Girdle
With your throwing shoulder, the scapula protracts using the serratus anterior muscle and pectoralis minor muscle.
The scapula of your glove hand retraction using your rhomboid muscles and the middle/lower fibers of the trapezius muscle.

Shoulder Joint
Throwing Hand- Diagonally adducts shoulder joint by concentrically contracting your pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and coracobrachialis muscles.
Glove Hand- Shoulder joint stays in adduction by eccentrically contracting your latissimus dorsi, teres major, and lower pectoralis major muscles.

Elbow Joint
Your glove hand elbow by concentrically contracting both heads of the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles. Your throwing hand forearm also stays slightly supinated by concentrically contracting the biceps brachii, brachioradialis, and supinator muscles.

Hip Joint
Non throwing foot causes the hip to stay externally rotated by eccentrically contracting your piriformis, gemellus superior and inferior, obturator internus and externus, and quadratus femoris muscles.
Opposite side of your hip stays internally rotated by concentrically contracting your gracilis, semitendinosus, and semimembranosus muscles.

Knee Joint
Non throwing knee remains slightly flexed by concetrically contracting your biceps femoris, popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus.
TThrowing knee remains internally rotated by isometrically contracting your popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus muscles.

Deceleration

Phase 5

Deceleration- This is occurs after the ball is released, and the arm is slowing down on the way down.

Shoulder Girdle
The scapula on you throwing shoulder continues in protraction by using your serratus anterior and pectoralis minor muscles. The scapula on your glove hand shoulder stays retracted using the middle/lower fibers of your trapezius muscle and rhomboid muscles.

Shoulder Joint
Throwing Hand- Continues to diagonally adduct shoulder joint by concentrically contracting your pectoralis major, anterior deltoid, and coracobrachialis muscles.
Glove Hand- Shoulder joint stays adducted by eccentrically contracting your latissimus dorsi, teres major, and lower pectoralis major muscles.

Elbow Joint
Your glove hand elbow concentrically contracting the biceps brachii, brachialis, and brachioradialis muscles.
Throwing elbow is extended by eccentrically contracting all three heads of the triceps brachii, and anconeus muscles.

Hip Joint
throwing leg causes the hip to flex and internally rotate. Flexion occurs when by contracting concentrically with your iliacus, psoas major and minor, rectus femoris, sartorius, pectineus, and tensor fasciae latae muscles, causing an anterior pelvic tilt.
Lead foot keeps the opposite side of the hip remains slightly flexed by concentrically contracting your iliacus, psoas major and minor, rectus femoris, sartorius, pectineus, and tensor fasciae latae muscles.

Knee Joint
The throwing knee flexes slightly by concentrically contracting your biceps femoris, popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus.
The non throwing knee remains in flexion by concetrically contracting your biceps femoris, popliteus, semimembranosus and semitendinosus.