Some corrections were made to a professional baseball pitcher that raised more questions than answers. It was stated that the pitcher “redoubled his efforts to not spin off his landing foot as he released the ball.” According to him,” my pitching coaches, for years they’ve been telling me to do it this way.”
These statements bring several factors to mind. First, how was it determined that a pitcher spins off his landing foot as he releases the ball? Second, is this a needed or desired action? Third, why do some pitching coaches advocate this action while others are against it?
Let’s look at each of these three factors. In all of my analyses of pitchers, I have never seen the landing foot spinning during the release. I consider the release the actual time that the ball is leaving the hand. In most pitchers body weight has already shifted onto the front leg when the ball is released. In this situation, spinning on the foot becomes impossible.
If coaches only visually looked at the pitcher throwing the ball, it is easy to understand how they can misinterpret what they see. As I stated in many previous blogs it is impossible to see what occurs in the power phase in almost all sports skills. But yet, coaches and players do not use film analysis to determine exactly what is occurring.
Nor do they have an understanding of the role of the foot spinning – if it does – and when there should be a spin in the total throwing motion. This knowledge would answer the second factor and partially the third. For example, there is usually some turning of the foot during the landing after the stride and possibly in the follow-through. It depends upon the kind of pitch thrown and/or the style of throwing used by the pitcher.
Because there is no scientific foundation for baseball knowledge, it is not surprising to see many coaches making contradictory recommendations. I constantly encounter this in my work with baseball and other sports players. In fact, a good portion of my work with athletes is to undo what coaches have told them to do!
Because of this it is no wonder that many athletes are held back in their progress. The more erroneous the suggestions that they are given, the more it holds them back in relation to becoming a high-level player or reaching their genetic potential. As a result I believe we “waste” more athletes than we make or develop.
For more information on developing a high-level athlete and teaching affective skills see Build a Better Athlete.